[FM16] Enemy Harriers Incoming!

[oriole01]

Hello all, I'm a brand new player of FM16 and a new user to the forums, but I'd like to share with you the very first save I've started on the game. I'm the manager of Kidderminster Harriers in the National League and currently performing well and above expectations. While I know there are bigger, better, and more exciting threads out there, my hope is to do some interesting things with my very first save. So without further ado, let's begin my Harriers journey!

Kidderminster Harriers

2015/16 Season Introduction

I started unemployed with regional footballing experience and the National A license. At the start of the season, I was offered jobs by Bromley, Stevenage, and Kidderminster. I chose the Harriers because of my recollection of a fairly surprising FA Cup run they had a few years back. Since I started this on the demo, only the default English leagues are loaded, but I will have over 40 leagues kicking in next season, mostly on view-only. I'm starting this CU a bit late, as I'm already 15 games into the Vanarama National season. Here's my results so far:

And here's how that translates to the league table:

A few interesting storylines here. It looks like Bromley really needed my help... Interestingly enough, as soon as I beat them on Matchday 12, they fired their coach. Seems as if I was the last straw for them . Also, Eastleigh, who were tipped to win the league by some strange formula, are doing terrible in the league sitting all the way down in 20th. Football League dropouts Cheltenham are also doing poorly so far. Finally, I'd love to create a rivalry with Grimsby Town even though they're rather far away from Kidderminster. I'm itching to play them again after humiliating me on the opening day and now I've pipped them in the table for the first time this week. Grimsby looked to be on the decline but acquiring Ryan Manning on loan from QPR has saved them, the young Irishman scoring 6 goals in five appearances. I can see both myself and Grimsby getting promoted this year the way Manning has played. Gateshead, Tranmere, Dover, Wrexham, and Forest Green also look strong despite Forest Green's recent struggles. I'm rather happy of my performances so far considering that Kidderminster were slated for relegation by the same odd formula that predicted Eastleigh as winners! The really good form as of late has me confident that I can bring the Harriers back to the Football League for the first time in 10 years.

Squad

Starting Lineup:

GK- Dean Snedker, 20, English

A decent young goalkeeper with great reflexes and aerial reach abilities. However he struggles to keep a clean sheet with only 3 in 15.

DR- Jared Hodgkiss, 28, English

Solid defender with excellent tackling stats. Good leader as well as he is our captain.

DC®- Ousmane Fane, 21, French

A young talent at the back with decent form and the potential to be a core defender later on.

DC(L)- Keith Lowe, 30, English

One of my favorites at the club who started out at Wolves (my favorite club) and has Championship-level experience. Excellent all-around attributes and a very good defender.

WB(L)- Zaine Francis-Angol, 22, Antiguan/Barbudan

An interesting young talent with the highest value and one of the highest potentials of anyone at the club. Could play as an attacking winger in the future but he is yet to score from his advanced wingback position. Also his international experience with Antigua and Barbuda helps him progress. Currently valued at a quarter-million USD.

MC®- Luke Maxwell, 18, English

An above-average 18 year-old on loan from Birmingham who has put in very good performances in the league for his age. Really good mental and physical attributes. Would love to be able to buy him once his season loan ends, but this probably won't happen due to current budget.

MC(L)- James McQuilkin, 26, Northern Irish

Probably the least talented player at the club in terms of CA and PA, but has put in some good shifts in the midfield. Currently injured for over a month and has been replaced by hotshot prospect Luke Woodland. I'll keep him in the starting role for this season, but by next season will likely be overtaken by Woodland and will certainly become surplus if we make it to League Two.

AM®- Adam Dawson, 23, English

One of the best young players at the club, Dawson leads the club with 3 PotMs and has put in some really spectacular performances, although he doesn't lead in any major specific categories. Top three performer at the club with a 7.25 average rating.

AM(L)- Elton Ngwatala, 22, French

The best player and best prospect at the club who already appears to be in his prime at age 22 who I believe has League One or even Championship potential contrary to my colleagues' beliefs. Leads the club with 7 goals in 13 apps, leads in dribbles and is second in average rating with 7.33 per game. Also he's the only player on the team with 5-star potential. Could lead this club to glory and could become a club legend if we can keep him.

STC®- Arthur Gnahoua, 23, English

A good young striker that has netted 6 times in the league. A bit inconsistent, but has had really good form as of late and his ability should rapidly increase to meet his 3.5-star potential as he is only at 1.5 currently.

STC(L)- Jeff Goulding, 31, English

An absolute steal on a free transfer. Goulding is a veteran with plenty of experience across 15 clubs from non-league and League Two. Has netted 6 times in just 9 apps since signing on at the deadline in August. Now in October, Goulding is quickly becoming one of my club favorites as he is extremely consistent and is scoring in nearly every game for us now after a slow start. Instrumental in an epic 3-3 comeback draw versus Halifax Town, Goulding has since scored in four of his last five games. Good technical and physical skills, but obviously at 31 he will not continue to improve much. Could continue to be good for a few years after this one until he declines.

Bench:

GK- Jonathan Brown, 17, English

A 17 year-old keeper recently called up from the Under-21s. Potential is not too good, but hopefully will have plenty of time to develop with the first team and serve as a solid backup for Snedker. Right now, he's really just there in case Snedker gets injured or sent off .

ST- George Taylor, 16, English

An exciting young wonderkid who became Kidderminster's youngest goalscorer at 16 years, 296 days with a goal against Forest Green. However I'm not sure about the reliability of records in this game. Has come off the bench in all but one of his 11 appearances, but has already scored 2 goals. His other goal was a heartstopping stoppage-time equalizer against Braintree that left me hysterical on the other side of the screen. He's got between 3.5 and 4.5-star potential, so I'm really hoping he'll come out on the higher end. Along with Goulding, he's really been the joy of this maiden save so far.

DC- Kelvin Langmead, 30, English

A guy who has been on loan from Ebbsfleet since the beginning of the game, so it wasn't my decision. He's not close to being better than Fane and Lowe and an early-season injury reduced his opportunities to start or even appear. When he has come on, he's been a straight meh, and I've thought about cancelling his loan, but I need him in case of injuries to the other two CB's. Stupidly made him the Vice-Captain, an honor I'd love to give to Lowe.

DC, DM- Valentin Gjokaj, 22, Albanian/Swiss

A former Derby player who was my first new signing as Kidderminster manager. He was available on free transfer, and has great potential, but he has yet to fully impress me at his new club. Fell out of favor at the back due to questionable mistakes and poor discipline, and since the McQuilkin injury I've let him have a go at DM, which I think he's been doing better as. He's still rather young, and has plenty of time to improve, but I'll need to see a lot more from him if he wants to start at the back anytime soon. Currently plays for a Level 5 German team in real life, which is a far cry from Derby or even Kidderminster.

ST- Jamie Spencer, 21, English

I'm a bit at odds with this guy over what to do with him. When Singh went down in the pre-season, he was one of my strikers. When Gnahoua was injured for a week or two, he was the main striker, and that was very unfortunate for the Harriers. He failed to score during that stretch despite plenty of chances and left all of the pressure on the midfielders to get goals. When Gnahoua returned and I acquired Goulding, I was able to put him on the bench and intended to keep him there. With only a 2-star potential, I doubt he'll be part of my immediate plans but he may have saved himself after coming off the bench to score a hat-trick against Lincoln. I'll have to see if he can do that again going forward.

AM- David Guppy, 17, English

The only newgen from my under-18 squad good enough to make it to the first team, Guppy was a very exciting prospect early on and was a first choice in the pre-season and early regular season until he gradually lost the AM job to Dawson and Ngwatala. First of all, I love the name. Secondly, he's a great passer of the ball who has tallied 4 assists in 11 apps, but is yet to score in the regular season following his two braces in the pre-season. Boasting a potential between 4 and 5 stars, and currently improving rapidly in nearly every area, I'm still very optimistic for Guppy despite him losing his starter status.

ST- Gurjit Singh, 24, English

Touted as the best striker and finisher at the club when I first arrived, I hardly got to see anything from Singh before he suffered a dislocated shoulder in the pre-season that has caused him to miss the first 15 games of the regular season. He has only recently recovered and has been rehabbing with the under-21s. I plan to have him back soon once he has regained match sharpness. I don't know much about Singh other than that he's a good finisher and scored one goal in the pre-season, so I don't have any expectations. Unfortunately, due to Goulding, Gnahoua, and Ngwatala working wonders in front of goal lately, it's unlikely that he'll get a starting spot anytime soon unless someone gets injured or stumbles upon poor form. I feel bad for Singh, but C'est la vie.

MC- Luke Woodland, 20, Filipino/Emirati/English

A polarizing international prospect that was somehow also available for free transfer. A former long-time Bolton youth product, I've been very impressed with Woodland through just one senior start, and I know I've got something special on my hands. Like Guppy, he's got between 4 and 5 potential and I'm really excited for him, Taylor, and Guppy as my future "Big Three" as we say in America for basketball. Currently unattached in real life.

DC- Tyrone Williams, 20, England

Every squad's got to have a weak link, right? Mine is Tyrone Williams, who interested me in the beginning and was being used as a sub until I discovered his 1.5 star potential, maxing out at 2. When he was forced to start due to injuries/suspensions, he was absolute rubbish and made way too many mistakes and missed tackles. I was prepared to take him off after 20 minutes . While he's still only 20 and has time to get better, the potential is unconvincing and he'll be the top candidate for transfer in the next window unless he can turn things around.

Assistant Coach

Gareth Spice, 39, English

Spice is the only staff member I'll mention, because it would be pointless to mention anyone else. I hired Spice towards the end of my staff-replacement blitz, since the game removes all previous staff without your input. He helps me out with a lot of stuff and points plenty of useful things out both on and off the field. However, I feel as if he's got no soul underneath and is pretty annoying at times, just like every chairman in the world. I'll bet he'll become one after he moves on from the Harriers. I couldn't live without him though!

Tactics

Here's a shot of my tactics:

I'm using a 4-2-4 wide, and usually "WB" and "Asymmetrical" are included since Francis-Angol is a wing-back. However, he's currently away playing for Antigua so Hancocks, an under-21, is in at LB.

This tactic has been what's worked best for me so far, and obviously individual instructions and focuses change for each match. I'm not the type of manager to keep changing tactics because I feel that changing too much will backfire rather easily and I like to stick with what works. I also rarely change the formation in-game. That's probably a noob move, but the results speak for themselves, and I am a noob .

Transfers

Another shot of my transfers:

So there's the three free transfers in with Gjokaj, Goulding, and most recently Woodland. Transfers out have all been loans of younger players from ages 17-21, and all of those players have 3.5-star potential or above except Jacobs. No full transfers out yet, but that's sure to change before the end of the year.

Youth Situation

I'm not going to go too in-depth about my youth development here, unlike other posters. Only the talent that has already made it to the first-team will have their achievements discussed in any formal manner. My under-21s are a load of bollocks at the moment, but that's mostly because almost the entire squad is out on loan . Under-18s aren't doing too much better, currently sitting at 11th in their group of 18 with 4 points from 4. No youth intakes yet, but that'll be posted when it happens.

Facilities and Finances

Here's my facilities summary:

So yeah, our stadium is called Aggborough, it's got a decent capacity for this league, and we get close to 2,000 fans for each home game. The pitch is crap, and I can't get the board to relay it. The players always get slathered with mud even when it's not raining! Everything else is basic or poor, but hey, that's what you sign up for when you take on non-league!

Finances: (Sorry it's in dollars, I'm an American who's obsessed with football and FM)

I highly doubt anyone's too interested in finances, and neither am I, but it's worth pointing out that that transfer budget was something like $30K before I sold a transfer clause worth $175K from a guy currently at Huddersfield. Finances are predicted to decline and go into debt, so that'll be a fun ride. I could also go back under the wage budget by cutting the Langmead loan, but I have my reasons for keeping him.

Main Points from this Season

As I've said before, I've been really satisfied with my season so far. The club's form has been excellent lately, winning five out of their last six and I would have been unbeaten since August had I not collapsed to Barrow a few games ago.

The highlight of my season so far would have to be the win over Lincoln:

This was an awesome match that had me delighted when I played it. Although we didn't dominate possession, we destroyed the Lincoln defence and the Jamie Spencer hat-trick was a more-than-pleasant surprise. Would have been even better had we not conceded that last minute goal...

The epic back-to-back comeback draws against Braintree and Halifax were also really fun and exciting, with both equalizers coming in stoppage time to infuriate my opponents.

That being said, the lowlight of my season so far has to be the collapse versus Barrow:

Our early lead came through Gnahoua, but that was cancelled out and then trampled over by a stampede of Barrow goals in rapid succession. I let my players know how mad I was in-game and out of game . I thought we might have started tanking after this, but an easy stretch against league punching bags Welling and Boreham Wood allowed us to regain our confidence. I'd consider this worse than my Grimsby loss because we were in the lead for so much of the game and then made a mockery of it. Hopefully there aren't too many more losses to speak of if I'm going to catch up to Gateshead.

Upcoming Schedule

Our upcoming fixtures, as shown earlier, will get tougher as we face some very decent teams in 2nd-placed Macclesfield, a resurgent 9th-placed Altrincham, 13th-placed Southport, 14th-placed Woking who were in 2nd a few weeks ago, and 4th- placed Chester, who have led the league longer than any other club. We'll also face 8th-placed Grimsby and leaders Gateshead before the schedule gets easier around Christmas time. I'll be looking for at least a point in all of these matches, and hopefully then we can launch an attack on the league title. Can't wait to get going again!

So What's the Verdict, Doc?

(Or, what are your goals?) Hopefully in my very first save I can do some great things with Kidderminster. My ultimate goal is to bring world-class football to Worcestershire, a county with only a handful of Football League seasons under its belt over all of its clubs' footballing histories (The only other clubs in the top 10 levels are Worcester City in Level 6 and Redditch United in Level 7). This will start by gaining promotion to the Football League in my first 2 seasons and then I'll see what happens from there. However, this is not a long-term save where I spout out 5 seasons a week. This first season will be very in-depth so that I can provide a winning foundation for years to come. Unfortunately, my initial goal of playing defensive football is struggling due to us conceding 25 goals in 15 games, but we haven't been conceding too much recently. The reason for our poor form in the first few weeks was several injuries to big players such as Lowe, Gjokaj, Ngwatala, Gnahoua, Langmead, and Singh.

Join me on this journey, and we'll see how far we can go!

Lastly, here's my manager profile:

His name is Ethan Burke, which just so happens to be my name as well. And no, I'm not 50 years old, quite a bit younger than that actually.

Ok everyone, that concludes this introduction to my first game. I'm terribly sorry that this post is so incredibly long, and I promise that no other post will ever be this long! Most other posts will be brief as I continue along through the first year. Anyways, I wouldn't expect anyone to read all of that. As I continue to update please give me some feedback on what you'd like to see and how well I've been doing things. I'd really appreciate it! This is the most fun I've had with a football game since FIFA 07 when I made the Championship my playground with 40-goal-a-season strikers Carl Cort and Jay Bothroyd as a super-powerful Wolves team with deadly free kick specialist Rohan Ricketts and long-range sniper Gabor Gyepes to boot.

Cheers,

oriole

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Here's my first update, from last night's game against Boreham Wood:

This was a bit of a disappointing scoreline against 22nd-placed Boreham Wood, but we controlled the game and prevented Wood from posting any true goalscoring opportunities. All of their shots were well off target. The match-winner was through magical signing Jeff Goulding, who received a beautiful long ball from Dawson and half-volleyed home the ball from 20 yards out just 5 seconds before the half-time whistle. A great effort for the veteran that sent us from 12th up to 7th in the table.

In regards to post frequency, I'll probably be updating every few days with a couple of results to share each time. This could increase if this thread gains some traction. I've got the whole summer off so I've got no problems with playing two or more games a day, although I prefer to play at night. I'll have another update later tonight with the next match against promotion candidates Macclesfield Town.

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Here's tonight's result from the match versus Macclesfield Town:

Wow. Jeff Goulding is an absolute hero. I wasn't expecting us to win this match and a draw was the most likely result, but our squad proved themselves tonight against the promotion candidates. Macclesfield clearly were in a better position to win, as they were able to double our number of shots and enjoyed a comfortable possession lead, but they could not find an answer to JG's 40th minute goal, which he 1-2d with Ngwatala to create wide open space in the box which resulted in an easy finish for Goulding in the bottom right corner. Macclesfield's second-half pressure was tremendous, and I think I only got 2-3 shots off in that half. Despite Macclesfield having several dangerous opportunities, our defence turned in one of its best performances yet to earn a well-deserved clean sheet. This was especially impressive after Gjokaj's poor disclipinary record continued with a sending-off, which I'm nowhere near proud of. In personnel news, Gurjit Singh is back but had a disappointing return off the bench as expected. His only shot flew well over the bar. Francis-Angol and Woodland will be back soon from international duty. I'm extremely proud and excited for this team!

New League Table

As you can see from that, we've moved up to 6th in the table and are now level with Dover and Wrexham, who drew against each other today. Chester are also now below me but level on points. Braintree move up, Grimsby move down, and Eastleigh and Halifax are now in the relegation zone. Since Gateshead and Macclesfield both lost I am now just 3 points off the lead! I pretty much feel like beating everyone now.

Thanks to everyone who's read! See you in a couple days for my next update!

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Time for an update! It's been a busy time in world football, with three different World Cup Qualifying sections going on and the conclusion of Euro 2016 qualification. Back home in Kidderminster, we've had another game to speak of:

This Altrincham team really gave us our all, but once again it was the Harriers who came out victorious on the road. After going behind on 13 minutes to a ball that was pounced on at the back post from a sliding clearance, we hit back on 28 through a barely-onside run by Gnahoua that led to his 7th goal of the year on a header. We then went ahead on 48 through another good run, this time by Ngwatala who put in his 8th. Altrincham weren't done, scoring on a long cross across the goal that was headed in by an unmarked Lee at the back post. We wouldn't be denied the 4th straight win though, as Gnahoua scored again on a turn-and-shoot in a crowded box that had great bend to it. A real heart attack moment came around the 85th minute when they smacked one against the inside of the post that was fortunate to come back out. A good win, but the defence was poor today after keeping two consecutive clean sheets and this really could have gone their way.

And...

New League Table

We're in 4th place! We haven't been in a playoff place all season long and now the task is to attack the top position, which we are still just 3 points behind. Tranmere are the new leaders in that spot, having lost just once, and Gateshead and Macclesfield move down.

Some quick personnel news:

Just acquired this guy on loan from level 6 Maidstone for 2 months. He's young and has 4-5 star potential, so hopefully he can contribute in the midfield.

And finally, here's the results of our FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round draw:

Wow, I was really hoping for a Level 7 team. I've got a feeling that Macclesfield will be coming after me this time with significant prize money on the line, but if I can beat them away I can probably beat them at home. The FA Cup is the only way I could get into European competition as a team outside the Premier League, as ridiculous as that sounds , so I view that as equally important to the league at the moment.

See you for the next update! Any and all feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Next Match: vs. Southport (H)

[tyler16]

Will be following, this is written and displayed very nicely.

Keep it up!

[oriole01]

Will be following, this is written and displayed very nicely.

Keep it up!

Thanks Tyler! Appreciate it!

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Big update here, two matches and a couple new storylines. My first match was against Southport, the team in 9th place and on good form.

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Southport

Pre-Match Scenarios

This is a new thing I'll be doing before each match now to give you some context and background.

Date: October 17, 2015

Venue: Aggborough (Home)

Attendance: 2,056

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Francis-Angol, Woodland, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua

Used Subs: Fane, B. Taylor, Singh

Out: McQuilkin (Injured)

Result

Another fine overall display from the Harriers, but both of our goals really shouldn't have happened. On 26 minutes, female referee Amy Fearn (quite surprised to see this, lol) gave us a penalty for no apparent reason! There was no explanation in the commentary but Gnahoua coolly slotted home the spot kick for his 9th of the year to become the sole top-goalscorer on the team. The remainder of the first half was dull, and so was most of the second, until veteran 38-year old midfielder Gary Jones lit it up for Southport on 76 when he hit a screaming blast into our top corner from beyond 20 yards out. Even I had to applaud on the other side of the screen. However, we got the match-winner in the cruelest manner I have seen on Football Manager so far. In second-half stoppage time, A Southport defender's attempted clearance clattered off the back of his teammate right in front of him! The ball then fell directly to the feet of substitute Gurjit Singh who fired from close in on an empty net . This became Singh's first competitive Harriers goal that sent the home fans into raptures. I felt legitimate empathy for Southport after this, but they were quite simply not the best team on the pitch on that day anyways. In minor personnel news, loanee Bobby-Joe Taylor made a quiet Harriers debut, coming on in the 76th for Ngwatala.

And of course, here's the new standings...

New League Table

2nd place! We are now just one goal differential point off the lead. This is golddust for a team that I was seriously worried about getting relegated early on in this save. It was a bad day for other top teams, with Tranmere losing to a desperate Forest Green, Gateshead and Wrexham drawing to inferior opposition, and Dover knocking Macclesfield out of the playoff places. At the bottom, Bromley blew another lead to remain in last place, while Welling have leapfrogged Halifax with a statement 5-1 win over Barrow. Eastleigh and Guiseley have now somewhat distanced themselves from the relegation zone.

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Macclesfield Town

Pre-Match Scenarios

FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round

Date: October 24, 2015

Venue: Aggborough (Home)

Attendance: 2,449

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Francis-Angol, Woodland, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua

Used Subs: Singh, Guppy, Spencer

Out: McQuilkin (Injured), B. Taylor (Cup-tied)

Odds: Kidderminster- 1:6 (fav) Macclesfield- 10:1 Draw- 5:1

Result

Quick message first, my game crashed before I could save today, so if any of you saw the previous result, please disregard it. So yeah, I kind of accidentally cheated on this game.

We came in as overwhelming favorites by the bookmakers, which was mostly an exaggeration, because I know that Macclesfield are a good team. Despite this, we really took them to the task today and came out with a well-deserved win to put us ahead into the First Round proper, with European dreams still alive. We started out well in the 14th minute with a wrenching Valentin Gjokaj header off of a corner that left Iraqi national goalkeeper Shwan Jalal with no chance. It became Gjokaj's first Harriers tally! Macclesfield were just poor on the ball today, and didn't provide enough chances to get back level. One of their efforts did clip the top of the bar, and Snedker was forced to keep out another decent strike, but that was about it for The Silkmen's attacking game today. In second-half stoppage time, Adam Dawson picked out Gurjit Singh from the wing, who proceeded to seal Macclesfield's fate by kneeing the ball in from close range. Gurjit has now scored in two straight since his return. A season-high crowd of 2,449 people were rightfully satisfied. I know now through the First Round draw that I'll have a real tough tie on my hands against Bradford City, who are near the top of League One and one of the hardest teams I could've gotten in the draw. Lucky me.

Transfer News

Bon voyage, Tyrone Williams! He's just turned 21 so hopefully he can take on some extra responsibilities by doing well in Level 7 football. I've let him go for the rest of the season on loan, and I've also been loaning away more Under-21s players. Finally, our Under-18s got knocked out of the U18 Cup, so that may sum up our youth progress here so far.

Thanks again for reading! I'll have another league game up tonight.

Next Match: 10/31 vs. Woking (H)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Woking

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 19

Date: October 31, 2015

Venue: Aggborough

Attendance: 2,430

Odds: Kidderminster- 1:6 (fav) Woking- 10:1 Draw- 5:1

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Francis-Angol, Woodland, Dawson, B.Taylor, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua

Used Subs: Fane, G.Taylor, Guppy

Out: McQuilkin (Rehab assignment), Maxwell (Yellow card accumulation)

Result

You never know what can happen on Halloween, but the Harriers made easy work of Woking on All Hallows' Eve. Earlier on, Woking got off more shots than I had expected they would, especially with their top goalscorer Jordan Slew out, but nothing was too threatening in the first half. I also had some decent chances, but also nothing worthy of note. Just over a minute into the second, however, main man Jeff Goulding scored the game's only goal from a good Elton Ngwatala ball that JG leaped over a defender to connect with. The ball looped into the back of the net before the goalkeeper could fully realize what was going on. In the 78th, we nearly gave the lead away when a poor Dawson back-pass to a defender was intercepted by Sole, which required Snedker to bail us out with a good parrying save to keep the clean sheet. Finishing was once again the separator between me and my opponents, as Woking appallingly missed some fairly good opportunities to score. I had a few more chances to put them away in the second half, but one would be enough to see them off. Bobby-Joe Taylor made his first Harriers start, swapping positions with Adam Dawson and having an okay game at AM.

And now here's the table:

New League Table

No change this time on my part. Leaders Tranmere recorded an impressive 3-0 victory over playoff candidates Dover, thus increasing their goal differential advantage to three above mine. Wrexham overtook Gateshead after the latter lost to Boreham Wood in shocking fashion and the former beat out-of-form Barrow. Further down, Cheltenham leapfrogged a few teams with a win to move up to 13th, Eastleigh moved up again, and despite Boreham Wood's upset win over Gateshead they dropped back into the relegation zone.

Awards

To my delight, I won Vanarama National Coach of the Month!

Wow, I guess winning all of your games in a month makes you a shoe-in for these things. I got 3rd in this last month, so hopefully I can claim a lot more of these prizes! Currently, I'm really enjoying life at Kidderminster. Thanks for reading! See you soon!

Next Match: 11/7 vs. Bradford City (H)

(Hoping not to get crushed )

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

_{Kidderminster Harriers vs. Bradford City}

Pre-Game Scenarios

FA Cup First Round

Date: November 7, 2015

Venue: Aggborough

Attendance: 6,444 (sellout!)

Odds: Kidderminster- 13:2 Bradford- 2:5 (fav) Draw- 11:4

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Fane, Lowe, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Woodland, Maxwell, Goulding, Gnahoua

Used Subs: Dawson, Ngwatala, Singh

Out: B.Taylor (Cup-tied)

Special Formation: 5-3-2 WB

Result

Well, that's pretty much how things were expected to go. I went with a new 5-3-2 formation without our wingers Ngwatala and Dawson to start, as we needed a much larger defensive presence than in league games. And for the most part, that worked. We limited Bradford's chances for a decent stretch of the match until they found the breakthrough on 22 minutes. Billy Knott's goal was a real beauty, a blast from 17 yards that he converted with two of our defenders draped over him. After that, Bradford started finding more opportunities to score but Snedker held firm on every other shot on target. Our only real chance was through Gnahoua, who in the late first half received a cross from the wing on his head that looked destined to score but their keeper came across with safe hands to prevent it. Eventually, I switched back to our normal formation and brought on Ngwatala and Dawson in hopes of forcing a replay, but even they couldn't create enough chances to save us. Bradford City beat us fair and square, even though the opportunity they capitalized on didn't look to be a clear-cut chance. I'm still proud of my boys for the way they played, and I'm happy to concede just one to a much better side. That being said, if it's only one goal and some technical skill that separates us from quality League One opposition, then I think I can be optimistic going forward as we look to climb the divisions.

Yeah, that pretty much reflects my thoughts in real life. This is a match I won't forget, and it was really fun as a non-league manager to have a sellout crowd, take part in meaningful press conferences, and have the opportunity to create an upset. Maybe the FA Trophy will hold more excitement for us.

Thanks for reading! Another league result should be up today, alongside some FA Cup upsets and brief recaps of some important world football fixtures.

Next Match: 11/10 vs. Chester (A)

[Northernpilgrim]

Solid start

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Chester vs. Kidderminster Harriers

Pre-Game Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 20

Date: November 10, 2015

Venue: The Deva Stadium (Away)

Attendance: 1,997

Odds: Kidderminster- 2:5 (fav) Chester- 13:2 Draw 11:4

Kidderminster Lineup Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Hancocks, McQuilkin, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua

Used Subs: Woodland, B.Taylor, G.Taylor

Out: Brown (injured), Francis-Angol (international duty)

Result

Another day at the office for the Harriers. We took the early lead through Gnahoua, who received a James McQuilkin pass, took a couple of touches, and drilled the ball into the back of the net from the outer reaches of the box. That lead was then doubled by Dawson, who beat a defender to another McQuilkin pass that he scored with on his first touch. We continued to have good goalscoring chances, but they were all negated by either the offside flag, side netting, or the goalkeeper. Everything was smooth sailing until the 77th minute, when a horrid Dawson backward pass found its way to Chester teenager De'Jaune Taylor-Crossdale, who was able to put away a simple-enough finish. Not a mistake we should be making under any circumstance going forward. Still, wins are wins and I'm happy to have beaten another quality league opponent. In some personnel notes, youngster James Hancocks filled in for the Antiguan international Francis-Angol at LB, and he had a good game at the back. McQuilkin really impressed today with his two assists, which should secure him the starting job for the remainder of this season over 20 year-old Woodland. On that subject, Woodland took a knock during this game and has gashed his head, but he should be able to play through it.

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for...

New League Table

Ok, truthfully I'm only in first place because Tranmere didn't play, but it's still the best possible feeling to have in FM. This is our league now, so the only mission remaining is to secure it and hold down the fort. Elsewhere in the table, there hasn't been much movement, other than Barrow slipping all the way down to 17th and bottom-dwellers Welling and Bromley both winning to leave Halifax in the dust in last place.

Transfer News

Bye bye Kelvin! He asked for it, so I didn't want to spoil the party by turning him down. This frees up salary space and allows me to put Keith Lowe at vice-captain. Something I found quite funny is that on his plans list one of them says "would prefer not to play for Kidderminster". This just proves the Harrier lifestyle isn't for everyone. I guess this isn't really a transfer, but it's still worthy of note.

Thanks again to those who have read and responded. You can always expect updates every 1-2 days. Until next time!

Next Match: 11/14 vs. Aldershot Town (H)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Aldershot Town

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 21

Date: November 14, 2015

Venue: Aggborough

Attendance: 2,955

Odds: Kidderminster- 1:2 (fav) Aldershot- 9:2 Draw- 13:5

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Hancocks, McQuilkin, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua

Used Subs: Woodland, Singh

Out: Brown (injured), Francis-Angol (international duty)

Result

Well, the 7-game league winning streak we were on has now ended due to a frustrating showing from the Harriers on fan day at Aggborough. We have gotten into a habit of scoring early, with Jeff Goulding converting this time in the 16th when he booted in a ball to the bottom left in a crowded box after a throw-in. Thus, fan day began with a shout. Just a minute later, Arthur Gnahoua had another remarkable chance off a long ball in open space that he somehow could not convert. This became a pattern for him, as Gnahoua missed several very respectable chances to extend the lead, and the team allowed the Aldershot keeper to put on a superhuman performance in the net after conceding first. Eventually, Gnahoua was subbed off for Singh, but his missed opportunities would come back to bite us. In the 77th, (same time that we conceded last game) Aldershot found the run of star striker Ross Lafayette, who popped the ball over the head of a flustered Dean Snedker to draw level. I furiously commanded my guys to score, but no goals materialized the last ten minutes. The quality of finishing was extremely poor and off character today, and I was particularly harsh on Gnahoua during and after the game. I understand that my winning streak has probably reduced my tolerance for anything less, as I would have been totally satisfied with a draw early on in this save. But still, this is a struggling opponent that is not currently on our level, and we failed to differentiate ourselves today.

New League Table

The position doesn't change, but the points gap extends from 3 to 4, and it would have been 6 had I won today. Tranmere lost again to Lincoln City, who have made a huge jump from 11th to 5th, which is rather uncommon in this stage of the season. Every other team between those 2 places either lost or didn't play. A very late equalizer earned 4th-placed Gateshead a draw with 3rd-placed Wrexham, who have now moved to 2nd. That goal allowed the points gap to stay where it was. Macclesfield and Grimsby are struggling outside the playoff places, and wins from Welling and Halifax allow the former to move out of the drop zone and the latter back ahead of Bromley, who have returned to the cellar with another loss.

Brief World Football Update

The world has been very busy in the past few days, with World Cup Qualifiers on four continents, EURO 2016 Playoffs, and a few continental competitions reaching their apex. The two continental competitions that wrapped up recently are the CAF Champions League and the AFC Cup, with more finals in those continents at the end of November. This isn't really pertinent to my game, but one of my favorite parts about this game is to see the entire footballing world and I always strive to keep up with as much as I can.

African Champions League Final:

ES Tunis (Tunisia) def. Al-Ahly SC (Egypt) 2-1 on aggregate

This is ES Tunis' 3rd CAF Champions League title.

AFC Cup Final

Al-Qadsia SC (Kuwait) def. Arbil SC (Iraq) 2-1

This is Al-Qadsia's 2nd AFC Cup title.

At end of the season, I'll have a big recap of tournaments like this and list winners of other domestic leagues and cups. Hopefully that'll be fun to put together!

That wraps it up for today. As always, thanks for reading!

Next Match: 11/21 vs. Braintree Town (A)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Braintree Town vs. Kidderminster Harriers

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 22

Date: November 21, 2015

Venue: Cressing Road Stadium (Away)

Attendance: 681

Odds: Kidderminster-1:3 (fav) Braintree- 7:1 Draw- 4:1

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua

Used Subs: Woodland, B.Taylor, G.Taylor

Result

Well, you can't say these games are getting any easier. For some reason the league has me playing teams I've already played before I've seen every other team once. After earning a legendary comeback draw against Braintree in the reverse, we went away today to grab the win and ensure I won the season series. It was a chippy match that saw 7 yellow cards brandished, which culminated in a sending off for one of their players in the late goings. For most of the match, Braintree looked the better team, but the only goal of the day was ours through Elton Ngwatala on 32 minutes. "Ellie" scored after Gnahoua's close-range shot once again hit the goalkeeper, which bounced out to Ngwatala and he tucked the rebound home. Another fine clean sheet from Dean Snedker kept us in the lead the whole way, but there were some seriously scary moments from The Iron at the other end that made me doubt a win was on the cards. The games continue to get tighter around mid-season, and I will have to hope this team's form can keep us afloat atop the league going forward.

League Table

Still first place! Tranmere have reduced the gap to three points since they had a game in hand on us, and this drops Wrexham back down to 3rd. Dover and Gateshead swap places, Woking and Cheltenham also make big jumps in addition to Lincoln from last week, and Macclesfield, Grimsby, Forest Green, and Barrow continue to suffer bad form. For the first time in a while, the relegation zone remains the same.

More World Football

Once again, the world was extremely active in the past week, with the same four World Cup qualifying regions continuing action and the second and final leg of the EURO 2016 playoffs. That being said, the field for EURO 2016 in France is now set. Take a look:

This is pretty exciting to look at when compared to real life. Here's some comparison to the real life tournament that's going on right now.

Teams that have qualified for EURO 2016 that did not in real life include: Netherlands, Greece, Bosnia, Scotland(), Serbia, Denmark, and Slovenia

Teams that did not qualify for EURO 2016 that did in real life include: Albania, Iceland (), Turkey, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Sweden

Slovenia, my favorite country in Europe, other than maybe the UK, Ireland, and Germany, has qualified in FM, which I really wish could've happened in real life. Seeing the quality of teams in this tournament though, I'd have to say they'd have very little chance to beat most of the teams there, especially since they lost to Ukraine in the real-life playoffs, who were one of the worst teams at the tournament performance-wise. Anyways, I digress.

The FA Cup surprisingly didn't produce many surprises in the First Round. The only real upset was Boreham Wood beating League Two side Dagenham and Redbridge, and there was only one instance in which a League 2 team beat a League 1 team. I suppose Shrewsbury beating Wigan might be a bit of a surprise considering Wigan's history, but they're still in the same division. A couple of Level 6 sides are still left, but they only advanced since they got drawn against other Level 6's or the one or two 7's that were still left. It's pretty much quiet on the cup front.

That's all for now. As always, thanks for reading! The next update will be a Mid-Season Review since I'll have played 23 out of the 46 league games by then.

Next Match: 11/28 vs. Grimsby Town (A)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Grimsby Town vs. Kidderminster Harriers

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 23

Date: November 28, 2015

Venue: Blundell Park (Away)

Attendance: 2,816

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua

Used Subs: G.Taylor, Woodland, B.Taylor

Result

A wholly satisfying win for us today over the team that humiliated us at our home field on opening day. This time, the opposite is true. We got off to a flying start in the 4th through Goulding, who linked up with Gnahoua on a well-timed through ball that was easy to finish in the end. Twenty minutes later, JG struck again on a quick break that once again ended with wide-open space and an inspired finish from our star man. Arthur Gnahoua continued to inexplicably fire the ball directly at the goalkeeper, which I suppose I'll have to tell him is not the goal of football. Shortly into the first half, Grimsby subbed on Omar Bogle, who was very much my ahem- bogey, in the reverse fixture and just three minutes after coming on he pulled one back for The Mariners by getting free on an overhead ball and blasted it past a surprised Snedker. However, the deal was sealed on 67 when Keith Lowe plowed the ball across the line off a corner, except it was curiously given as an own goal because it made slight contact with Grimsby striker Padraig Amond who was standing in the net. The ball would have gone in with or without him. Therefore, a terrible call denied Keith Lowe's first Harriers goal from going into the books. An uneventful final 20 minutes drew this satisfying result to a close.

MotM: Jeff Goulding

Now, I'd like to start my mid-season review:

Kidderminster Harriers

2015-16 Mid-Season Review

First, I'll start with the league table as it stands halfway through the season:

League Table

A wildly successful start to the year has led to us leading the league by a decent three points. The remainder of the playoff challengers below Tranmere are now 7, 8, and 11 points behind me, and with my current form, the only team that could realistically catch me are the long-time Football League stalwarts of Tranmere Rovers. This will become a tough fight from now on, and every game will become must-win in order to stave off their threat, and the next time I meet Tranmere it will become the most important game of the season. Previously, I held them to a 0-0 draw but I know that next time they are going to put it all on the line. We won't be meeting them again until late March, and I'll have a full report of that match when it happens. Elsewhere in the table, Cheltenham are finally making the playoff push that was expected of them, and are now level on points with 5th-placed Dover. Altrincham have also moved within one point of the playoff zone as well as Chester and Lincoln. Pre-season league favorites Eastleigh, who were in the relegation zone not so long ago, have now also moved within striking distance of the playoffs in 11th. Early favorites Macclesfield, Grimsby, and Forest Green have all tailed off, and the former two will need inspired form to keep up with the playoff pack. Finally, a scrappy fight is sure to emerge at the bottom of the table with Bromley being the only side that's looking highly likely to be relegated at the moment. Every other team towards the bottom is up for debate. I haven't lost a league game for over two months, and have only dropped points once in that span. Adding onto that, I've won 13 out of my last 16 games in the league. If we can continue, the league is ours. Even if we drop off a bit, I'm still very confident in this team to be able to hold off our aforementioned challengers come May.

Next, here's our squad sorted by average rating, just to give you guys a sense of who we're finding the most success with:

So through and through, Adam Dawson has been our best player so far this year. Despite Jeff Goulding's goalscoring heroics, Dawson has still been the better player with his intimidating playmaking presence up front as an AM, and he has 8 assists and 5 Man of the Match awards to back that up. He's also contributed in other areas with 4 goals and a decent amount of tackles per game for a winger. I've also been thoroughly impressed with the performances of Ngwatala, Goulding, Maxwell, and McQuilkin. Gjokaj is finally coming into his own around mid-season and is putting in good shifts at CB after some earlier hesitation to start him. That's dented the playing time of Ousmane Fane, but both guys are still young and I'm confident in Fane in the future. The form of players like Hodgkiss, Gnahoua, and Guppy hasn't been totally inspiring but the average rating doesn't speak for everything. I'd also like to think the FM rating system is hard on goalkeepers, as I think Snedker is also getting better as the season goes on as he's been putting up a lot more clean sheets recently after a horrid start to the year in goal. Despite this, his ratings haven't been above 7 even when he does get the clean sheets and is forced to make multiple saves. The player with the worst rating on the team, George Taylor, is only 16 years old so I've got no worries about him whatsoever. Everyone else who I haven't mentioned has been solid and has been doing their part, but nothing of exemplary note has been done so far. I'm aware that this list may very well drastically change at season's end.

Now here's the top goalscorers list halway through the campaign:

You can clearly see three Harriers representatives on the top of that list, and when you look at Jeff Goulding he's scored 11 goals in significantly fewer appearances than anyone else who has scored that many. Quite simply he's been the best signing I've ever made in any football game, ever. That goes up against ridiculous signings I've made for Wolves in three different editions of FIFA. Gnahoua and Ngwatala are well-represented with 10 and 9 respectively. Our guys are seriously efficient scorers, with Goulding and Ngwatala both turning over half of their shots into goals. At the top of the list, Payne and Holman are absolute machines, and those are guys I've definitely got my eye on in case we get promoted to League Two. Yusuff is a promising player on loan from Dagenham who is the shining star on an otherwise dull Welling side. He just won Player of the Month and Goal of the Month in the league for a crazy bicycle kick from 15+ yards . Speaking of those awards, I didn't even make the shortlist for Manager of the Month this time around despite having as many wins as the three other managers on the list.

And now here's my FA Trophy first round draw:

Finally an easy cup draw! Merthyr Town, the Welsh side who play at Level 7, did advance as far as me in the FA Cup but obviously played weaker opposition to get there. I should be able to relax and start guys like George Taylor, James Hancocks, and even some lads from my Under-21 side to give them some valuable first team experience.

World Football Update

Another couple of continental competitions have wrapped up in Africa and Asia, as I mentioned would happen a few posts back.

CAF Confederation Cup Final

ES Setif (Algeria) def. Kaizer Chiefs FC (South Africa) 1-0 on aggregate

This is ES Setif's first CAF Cup title. They've also lifted two African Champions League titles.

AFC Champions League Final

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (South Korea) def. Al-Nassr FC (Saudi Arabia) 3-2 on aggregate

This is Jeonbuk's second AFC Champions League title.

Lastly, my final note is that the first two foreign leagues have activated in Nordic brethren Iceland and Finland. Their leagues won't start until near the end of mine, but I'll start to see that Icelandic national team fully fleshed out now with all players from the homeland fully unlocked.

Thanks for reading my season review! If you didn't bother reading my game-by-game updates, this and the OP are the only posts you really need to read so far, along with skimming the bottom of some of the updates for pertinent team news and information. Pretty soon, my updates will start becoming less frequent in terms of the matches described, as I'll start updating you three in-game weeks at a time. This is mostly because I'm not expecting my league position to change and updates each game wouldn't serve much purpose, and also because I'd prefer to do it that way as it's getting a bit repetitive doing these updates every day or two. Still, I'll do a few more game-by game ones until I've let you see me play each team once.

Cheers! Until next time then. Let me know if there are any more tidbits you'd like to see from the league, club, squad, outside world, etc.

Next Match: 12/5 vs. Gateshead (H)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Gateshead

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 24

Date: December 5, 2015

Venue: Aggborough

Attendance: 2,498

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Singh

Used Subs: Woodland, Fane, Gnahoua

Result

I'm at a loss for words. I really and truly have no idea what happened to us out there. We went behind by two early, aided by a dreadful Gjokaj OG, struck back through Singh, and then tried hard to get back into the game in the second half. That's when all hell broke loose. That's really about all I'm going to say about this match. We were completely exposed by a team that has proven themselves to be tactically and technically superior. Gurjit Singh asked for playing time before the match, so I had to start him to avoid upsetting the balance. At least he got a goal out of it. Maxwell's discipline really sucks, as I've now lost him for two matches after his second sending-off of the year. There are plenty of words I won't use to describe our performance today, and this game has suddenly got me worried about the prospects of facing bigger teams every week if we get promoted to League Two. Luckily for me, we've got a confidence-booster ahead in the FA Trophy match against minnows Merthyr Town, so that should prevent the team morale from sinking, which would probably put us into a rut. Time to forgive and forget.

MotM: Jimmy Phillips

Here's the league table, I've only shown the top half this time:

New League Table

And now we've sunken back below Tranmere, even if only on goal difference, which has now been crippled as a result of this match. Now I pretty much can't finish level on points with Tranmere at the end of the season if I want to win the league unless I really start thrashing some teams. Gateshead are now up to 3rd, Woking have joined the playoff party, Grimsby have rapidly recovered from bad form to move all the way back up to 6th, and Dover have slipped out of the playoffs after losing to Halifax. At the bottom of the table, which isn't shown, Torquay have beaten Welling to send them back into the relegation zone, which includes Halifax, Boreham Wood, and Bromley.

Thanks for reading, although this one isn't going to be fun to read and hasn't been fun to write. I'll have my cup match up tonight and then I'll be away from home for a few days, so no updates then.

Next Match: 12/12 vs. Merthyr Town (A)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Merthyr Town vs. Kidderminster Harriers

Pre-Match Scenarios

FA Trophy 1st Round

Date: December 12, 2015

Venue: Penydarren Park (Away)

Attendance: 438

Kidderminster Lineup: Brown, Jones, Fane, Higgins, Hancocks, Woodland, McQuilkin, Guppy, B.Taylor, Spencer, G.Taylor

Used Subs: Ngwatala, Francis-Angol, Jacobs

Out: Maxwell (Yellow card accumulation)

(Red denotes club debutant)

Result

In a match against a Level 7 Welsh club playing in the English system with only two real players, I felt at ease in putting out my youngsters for this FA Trophy opener. I called up five players from my Under-21s squad, and ended up using four. The only regular starters in the lineup were Fane and McQuilkin. I felt rather comfortable with my squad selection when we forced the Merthyr keeper to make a save just 20 seconds into the match, and I began expecting an easy demolition. However when we hadn't scored by 30 minutes, I became a bit worried for my boys, as Merthyr actually looked good in possession. My fears were confirmed six minutes later, when greyed-out striker Kevin Handley broke through my defence and scored off a barely-onside run. At half-time, I was forced to bring in the emergency starters in Ngwatala and Francis-Angol to avoid a humiliation, and their presence was enough to sway the odds back in our favor. Jamie Spencer hit back on 48, and he could have had four goals had he not had two strikes disallowed for offside. Francis-Angol then gave us the lead with a pretty header on 66 for his first Harriers goal in 22 apps. Spencer scored again on 78, at which point the game looked settled, but three minutes later Handley scored again by sliding in a ball off a corner. However there would be no epic comeback for the Welshmen as Ousmane Fane also scored his first Harriers goal in the closing stages of this entertaining yet briefly scary cup tie.

MotM: Elton Ngwatala

Elsewhere in the FA Trophy, Level 8 Walton and Hersham shocked Aldershot Town with a last-minute goal and my rivals Tranmere crashed out again with a loss to Fylde. And in quick personnel news, this was Bobby-Joe Taylor's last game in a Kidderminster uniform, as his loan has ended and he'll be returning to Maidstone very soon. I didn't get too much of an impression from the guy and he failed to score, but the work ethic and development was all I was looking for.

Next Up:

Grimsby Town again. Here's another chance to prove my superiority. I'll have to treat this exactly like a league match, and I'm disappointed not to have drawn a lower division side to spice things up further.

World Football Update

The 2015 FIFA Club World Cup has kicked off in Japan. I actually really like this competition despite its criticisms. It also features recently-crowned African and Asian champions ES Tunis and Jeonbuk Hyundai.

Preliminary Round:

Sanfrecce Hiroshima (Japan) def. Auckland City FC (New Zealand) 3-0

Quarter-Finals:

Sanfrecce Hiroshima (Japan) def. Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (South Korea) 2-1

CF America (Mexico) def. ES Tunis (Tunisia) 3-0

Sanfrecce will play River Plate in the semis and America will play Barcelona. Also, the UEFA Champions League and Europa League have concluded the group stage and reached the knockout stages. I'll provide updates for those once they reach the quarterfinal.

Thanks for reading! Sorry I took so long for an update but I was away from home. I'll only be providing in-depth reports for two more league games, one of which will be up soon.

Next Match: 12/19 vs. Eastleigh (A)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Eastleigh vs. Kidderminster Harriers

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 25

Date: December 19, 2015

Venue: Silverlake Stadium (Away)

Attendance: 1,288

Kidderminster Lineup Snedker, Hodgkiss, Gjokaj, Lowe, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Woodland, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Singh

Used Subs: Guppy, Gnahoua, Taylor

Out: Maxwell (Suspended)

Result

League matches are becoming more and more difficult for us. I was hoping to get the team back on track after the Gateshead embarassment with a win against 14th-placed Eastleigh, who had been slated as favorites for this match just like they were for the league title in the pre-season. My attempts to dissatisfy the home fans took a heavy blow in the 30th minute when James Constable, who had looked dangerous all game, received a good cross and volleyed the ball in from close range. In the second half, the situation started looking dire after substitute Arthur Gnahoua missed a sitter from a few yards out on an empty net. Gurjit Singh would come to the rescue, however, when on 82 he turned a perfect Adam Dawson long ball into a volleyed goal of our own from 13 yards out. Vital saves from Snedker both before and after our goal allowed us to stay in the running for a point today. Eastleigh looked the much better team though, and I had to send a message to my players after the game stating that these are games we have to win as we were lucky to come away with a result today. What does really infuriate me is that I won this game before I had another client crash.

Now here's the table:

New League Table

We're also lucky to still be level with Tranmere, as only a very late equalizer from Halifax prevented them from getting all three points today. I'm still waiting on them to hit bad form... Elsewhere, Cheltenham continue their rapid rise up the table and are level on points with Woking and just outside a highly contested fifth-place spot. Torquay have found some good form that has distanced them from the relegation zone somewhat, and Guiseley slip back into the drop zone after a considerable time outside of it, replacing Welling in 21st.

MotM: Gurjit Singh

2015 FIFA Club World Cup

The final few stages of this quick tournament went pretty much as expected.

Semi Finals:

River Plate (Argentina) def. Sanfrecce Hiroshima (Japan) 3-1

FC Barcelona (Spain) def. CF America (Mexico) 1-0

Third Place:

CF America def. Sanfrecce Hiroshima 5-0

Final:

FC Barcelona def. River Plate 1-0

This is Barcelona's 3rd CWC title (just like in real life).

Player of Tournament: Dani Alves

Thanks for reading! The last full-detail league match for quite some time will be up soon. I would have had this one up last night had my game not crashed. Hopefully my league form will become a little more consistent again.

Next Match: 12/26 vs. Cheltenham (H)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Cheltenham Town

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 26

Date: December 26, 2015

Venue: Aggborough

Attendance: 3,665

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Lowe, Gjokaj, Fane, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Singh

Used Subs: Gnahoua, Guppy, Hancocks

Out: Hodgkiss (Sick)

Result

Christmas has passed in Kidderminster, but Boxing Day provided plenty of excitement for the club in front of the highest crowd we've attracted for a league game this season at 3,665. This was a good match for us... or a good deal of it at least. The first half began with a bang, albeit with some controversy, when we were awarded a penalty for a "high foot" in the box. Cheltenham players were notably furious at the call, and I couldn't help but question it myself, but the penalty gave James McQuilkin a chance to score his first goal of the season, which he easily converted. Four minutes later, Elton Ngwatala caught Cheltenham keeper Dillon Phillips leaning in the wrong direction, and punished it by smacking the ball past him to cap a brilliant team move. Then, on 42 minutes, Jeff Goulding scored the third on a ball that Phillips, whose form was touted before the match, failed to come out and seize. Instead, it nestled into the roof of the net, and we entered half-time with a supreme advantage. The second half was a different story. Jack Munns had a spectacular half, which began when he pulled one back on a beautiful looping volley that Snedker had no shot at saving. On 75 minutes, Munns reduced Cheltenham's deficit to one goal with another volley that he darted to the back post to receive. The final 15 minutes of the match were nervy, and Cheltenham looked fully prepared to catch our defence sleeping again, but we escaped with the three points. A good result for us, which would have been much better had we not made it more tense in the second half.

MotM: Jack Munns

Now, let's see the league table:

New League Table

Welcome back to first place! Tranmere lost at Macclesfield to leave them three points behind again, with a very easy schedule coming up for us through January and early February. Elsewhere, Woking have emerged as surprise playoff contenders in 3rd place after they were in 16th at the beginning of November. Gateshead are a hilariously inconsistent team, who beat the tar out of the likes of us but then have been repeatedly been embarrassed by inferior opposition, this most recently coming in the form of a 5-0 drubbing against Barrow. Grimsby are holding firm outside the playoff spots, Macclesfield rise, Dover fall, and Chester have dropped off remarkably, sitting in 13th after leading the league for a few weeks a few months back. Finally, my next opponents Forest Green are in relegation danger after dropping to 19th, despite making it to the playoff final in real life.

World Football Update

Copa Sudamericana Final

CA River Plate (Argentina) def. CD Junior (Colombia) 5-1 on aggregate

This is River Plate's 2nd Copa Sudamericana title, which have now come consecutively.

Thanks for reading! Please don't hesitate to share your opinions about this thread. I've decided to do the last full detail report for the next match instead of this one, as it is the last one of the 2015 year in the game and that way I can transition better to monthly updates. See you soon!

Next Match: 12/28 vs. Forest Green (A)

[smp20]

Great start with Kiddy, as a Cambridge Utd fan i know the conference well and Kiddy too. Best of luck!

[oriole01]

Great start with Kiddy, as a Cambridge Utd fan i know the conference well and Kiddy too. Best of luck!

Thanks smp, I always appreciate commments. Being in the US I can only ever see the Premier League, Bundesliga, and MLS, but my admiration and knowledge of football rivals that of anyone. The only difference is I can't ever see any games outside of the highest levels. So I've quickly acquired plenty of Conference information since I've bought FM, while before I had only barely heard of a few of the teams in it since they're not on FIFA or TV. Thanks again for the kind words!

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Forest Green Rovers vs. Kidderminster Harriers

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 27

Date: December 28, 2015

Venue: The New Lawn (Away)

Attendance: 944

Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Lowe, Gjokaj, Fane, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Singh

Used Subs: Gnahoua, Woodland, Hancocks

Out: Hodgkiss (Sick)

Result

As 2015 sailed away for the Harriers, the boys marked their final game of the year with a win away from home. Adam Dawson opened the scoring for us on 11 with a brilliant half-volley that beat the goalkeeper in the bottom-left corner. However, just four minutes later, Keith Lowe gave away a bad penalty for a heavy push in the box. Former Blackpool veteran Keith Southern then stepped up to the spot for Forest Green and blasted the ball past Snedker, who went the wrong way. Later in the first half, Jeff Goulding had a "goulding chance" to score but his shot went straight at the keeper. Forest Green also hit the bar in the first, and at half-time the full three points were still up for grabs. I remained confident that I could see off our opponents who hadn't won a match in 7 straight fixtures. Goulding hit the bar himself early in the second, but Adam Dawson was again the one to put us ahead after he received a great ball from Zaine Francis-Angol and knocked it into the bottom-right for 2-1. Forest Green didn't pose much of a threat for the remainder of the match, but the game didn't end without bad news. In the penultimate minute of regular time Dawson suffered a neck injury and will be out for at least two weeks while he is treated. Forest Green beat us 2-1 last time out, but I'm happy to reverse the scorelines on them. Quite honestly they were a different team from last time, and several injuries to core players may explain why their team is barely above the relegation zone.

MotM: Adam Dawson

Let's take another look at the league table:

League Table

It looks like Tranmere have finally stumbled on that bad form I've been waiting for. They lost again to Altrincham and I'm now six points clear of them at the top. Despite this, they still have the same number of losses as we do. Elsewhere, Gateshead move back up two spots into 3rd again after finally winning a game they should have, Grimsby return to the playoff places and Wrexham drop out of them for the first time since early October, but they'll remain the most consistent top-six team out there. Altrincham have gone on a surprise run of five straight wins and now lie in 8th, just two points off the playoffs. Barrow rise back up to a respectable position, and Lincoln have sunk to 16th after suffering terrible form. They were briefly in 6th a month or so ago. Welling have gone crazy and have rose to seven points clear of the relegation zone, and Halifax have also done well to make it out of that same zone, with Aldershot taking their place. Finally, Bromley look totally screwed .

This marks the end of the first phase of my season, in which I provided game-by-game updates from matches 15-27. I'll now be switching to monthly updates, unless there's a cup game within the month, which I'll have to work out in a different way. That being said, cup matches will still be full-detail as I feel I've got a real shot at the FA Trophy this year, as well as the Tranmere game in March if it becomes important. Finally, the last 2-3 games of the season will be full-detail, as those matches may become extremely pertinent in clinching the title, if that were to happen of course . On to 2016! Thanks for reading!

Next Matches:

1/2 vs. Cheltenham

1/9 vs. Eastleigh

[oriole01]

The close of 2015 brought some of the biggest awards in world football. Let's take a look.

End of Year Awards: 2015

FIFA:

World Player of the Year and World Golden Ball: 1st- Lionel Messi 2nd- Marco Reus 3rd- Luis Suarez

What the heck is the difference between these awards?

World Team of the Year: Neuer, Danilo, Piqué, Boateng, Alba, Pogba, Vidal, Messi, Ibrahimovic, Reus, Suarez

Subs: Muslera, Touré, Ronaldo, Cavani, Neymar, Dani Alves, Lewandowski

Continental Awards:

Europe

European Golden Boy:

Héctor Bellerin, 20 (Arsenal/Spain)

Africa

Player of the Year:

1st- Sofiane Feghouli (Valencia/Algeria) 2nd- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Dortmund/Gabon) 3rd- Yaya Touré (Manchester City/Ivory Coast)

Young Player of the Year:

Riyad Mahrez, 24 (Leicester City/Algeria)

Asia

Player of the Year:

1st- Koo Ja-Cheol (Augsburg/South Korea) 2nd- Odil Ahmedov (Krasnodar/Uzbekistan) 3rd- Son Heung-Min (Tottenham/South Korea)

Young Player of the Year:

Awer Mabil, 20 (Midtjylland/Australia)

North America

Player of the Year:

1st- Javier Hernandez (Bayer Leverkusen/Mexico) 2nd- Michail Antonio (West Ham/Jamaica) 3rd- Oribe Peralta (Club America/Mexico)

Goalkeeper of the Year:

1st- Keylor Navas (Real Madrid/Costa Rica) 2nd- Jose de Jesus Corona (Cruz Azul/Mexico) 3rd- Moises Munoz (Club America/Mexico)

South America

Player of the Year:

1st- Carlos Tevez (Boca Juniors/Argentina) 2nd- Gabriel Mercado (River Plate/Argentina) 3rd- Diego Souza (Fluminense/Brazil)

Oceania

Player of the Year:

Winston Reid (West Ham/New Zealand)

This was just a quick little fill-in. Next update should come in a day or two.

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

January 2016- Part 1

The injury train has finally hit us, and it has struck hard. We don't have a deep squad, so when injuries hit we start dipping in form, and that's evident at the start of the new year. Throughout these two games Jared Hodgkiss, Valentin Gjokaj, Luke Woodland, and Adam Dawson were out in one or both. This forced me to bring up youngsters and subpar players from the U-21s, including a kid who had just returned from loan. Also, Luke Maxwell has now been suspended for five games due to his persistent bookings, of which an appeal was unsuccessful. So yeah, there's my excuse for two red circles. 

Cheltenham were always going to be favorites for this one, especially since we had just beaten them 2 weeks before and they were at home. Cheltenham's goal machine Dan Holman first penetrated our defenses on 9 minutes with a close-range volley, which was then canceled out 6 minutes later by David Guppy's first competitive goal. I started sensing a real shootout on our hands, but the shooting was all one-sided with a goal from Emmanuel Dieseruvwe, two from Billy Waters, another Holman tally, and a Luke Maxwell red card threw us into the deep end at 5-1 down. James McQuilkin scored a beautiful goal on 59 from deep in the box, and Jeff Goulding got another consolation in the 75th. However a 90th minute goal from Holman completed his hat-trick and sealed our fate. This was certainly a great match to watch for neutrals, but a stressful and depressing one for the Harriers.
MotM: Dan Holman

Based on our last match, I knew that James Constable carried a goal-scoring threat for Eastleigh, as he scored a late goal to earn them a 1-1 draw with us. However, we still couldn't stop him. We conceded early again when he struck in just the 4th minute off a Henry Cameron cross. Wonder signing Jeff Goulding got us right back in it when he received a cross off his chest, let it bounce, and then drilled home a half-volley in the 8th minute. But Constable scored again on 16 when he was skillfully picked out on another cross, this time with three of our defenders right on him. The resulting volleyed goal was a thing of beauty, but a big blow for the Harriers side. We had plenty of chances to equalize in the 2nd half, with a few shots coming agonizingly close to going in, but Constable's work gave Eastleigh a deserved win. Thankfully, we won't have to play these guys again.
MotM: James Constable

Table time! 

And just like that, my six-point advantage over Tranmere has evaporated. They've won both of their games, and as I've stated before, I'm going to have to finish above them on points if I want to win this league. The good news is, all of the injured players are back except Gjokaj, who will miss another 2-3 weeks. Hopefully that'll help us get back to where we need to be. Elsewhere in the table, Woking are becoming serious threats in 3rd place, Grimsby and Wrexham move up despite losses, Gateshead drop out of the playoff zone, and Welling rise all the way up to 13th place after fighting off relegation danger.

English Football Update

The FA Cup Third Round provided a bit more entertainment than the past rounds, with quite a few surprises. Although both non-league sides left in the competition, Boreham Wood and Weston Super Mare, were eliminated by Premier League opposition, there was other excitement. Middlesbrough held Man United to a 0-0 draw at home, 22nd-placed League Two side Notts County came from behind to knock out Championship team MK Dons, my eliminators Bradford City came back late to force a replay with Leicester, and League Two Carlisle held Championship Rotherham to a draw as well.

The January transfer window, like always, has been exciting, and at the end of January I'll have a recap post with the biggest and most outrageous deals. Next up is the FA Trophy tie against Grimsby, which will be full-detail.
Once again, thanks for reading! Sorry I took so long to update, but I've been working on another FM16 project and have been away from home as well. I do like the new format, but I'll miss my "Impact" font for this thread. Until next time!

Next Matches:
1/16 vs. Grimsby Town
1/23 vs. Guiseley
1/30 vs. Aldershot Town

[Andy Sava]

Really nicely done so far. Great updates, some of the most detailed updates i've seen on the forums. Will follow!

[oriole01]

7 minutes ago, Andy Sava said:

Really nicely done so far. Great updates, some of the most detailed updates i've seen on the forums. Will follow!

Thanks Andy! It's really nice to see some positive feedback. I want to make the Harriers experience as immersive as possible, but I didn't think anyone would be reading all the updates in full. Props to you! Hopefully we can get some more followers to this thread.

 

[kris0710]

I'll be following very closely. Just started a Kidderminster save myself - albeit with an update so Kiddy are in the National League North as in the 2016/17 campaign. Best of luck. ?

[oriole01]

4 hours ago, kris0710 said:

I'll be following very closely. Just started a Kidderminster save myself - albeit with an update so Kiddy are in the National League North as in the 2016/17 campaign. Best of luck. ?

Thank you kris! Good luck to you with the Harriers as well. Unfortunately, my Kidderminster squad is running upon some tough times right now....

Kidderminster Harriers

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Grimsby Town

Pre-Match Scenarios

FA Trophy Second Round
Date: January 16, 2016
Venue: Aggborough
Attendance: 2,051
Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Lowe, Fane, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Woodland, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Singh
Used Subs: Gnahoua, Guppy, Evan Garnett (debutant)
Out: Gjokaj (injured), Brown (injured), Maxwell (suspended)
 

Result

Blech. The scoreline is much closer than the game itself. I could sense difficulties coming heading into this match, with bookies constantly favoring my opponents over me for the past month. When we hadn't conceded by the 20th minute I felt a bit more confident in this match, but on 27 minutes the long-dormant Ryan Manning erupted with a goal that should have been saved by Snedker, who came rushing forward like a big goon at the ball. Nearly 20 minutes later, Manning scored again, and it was also Snedker's fault. A cross from the right wing was allowed by Snedker to reach Manning behind him, and the youngster on loan from QPR was able to finish on an open net. Snedker came out of his net but couldn't even lay a finger on an easy cross to collect. In the second half, chances continued to go to waste for us, and at one point we were involved in a ludicrous run of play where four straight close-range shots were deflected, saved, or hit the woodwork. Manning looked to have his hat-trick on 90, but for the second game in a row my opponents had a goal disallowed for offside. I actually felt sorry for him, because that's just how bad we were in this one. Off the resulting free kick, we launched an attack that resulted in a quickfire close-range strike for substitute Arthur Gnahoua, but it was too little, too late and we went crashing out of the FA Trophy. It's an absolute shame that this poor run of form had to come before a cup match, as I was almost certain we were going to win this tournament earlier on. Instead, we only made it to the second round, I'm extremely disappointed with our squad right now, losing again even after gaining all but one of our key players back, and in front of the home fans again. A serious team talk is going to have to be required to try and get us back on track, or else we'll be finishing my first FM season without any silverware. Either that, or a tactical revolution, which is going to be wild.

Elsewhere in the Second Round, 8th-level Walton and Hersham went out to Gainsborough Trinity 1-0, FC United knocked off Welling, and Wrexham offed a struggling Dover in extra time.

Thanks for reading. Hopefully there will be some better results coming your way next time.

Next Matches:
1/23 vs. Guiseley
1/30 vs. Aldershot Town

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

 "New Harrier in the Roost"

Our signing from the January Transfer Window is Chris Lester. I had brought him in on trial for a few weeks, and decided to sign him after an impressive performance in our first team mid-season friendly, which you'll see in just a bit. Lester shows promise, as he's only 21, has good potential, and is a member of Northern Ireland's Under-21s, which is a very good sign. He can only play one position, which happens to be Adam Dawson's right winger role, but we'll be able to make room for him going on.

I've also got another player on trial here, he's a 16-year-old newgen who has between 3 and 5 star potential. He wasn't willing to sign a full transfer for whatever reason but hopefully after the trial he'll be willing to sign on for less money. I've got him from the Montreal Impact Academy, and he's the only player from Turkmenistan in my database at the moment. Basically the only way I found him was by poking around the national teams of Asian countries to see how activating foreign leagues has helped improve their squads, and this kid was the only Turkmen visible. However, his name is Gerry... Gerry Fischer. Kind of strange, even with the Canadian second nationality . Hope he pans out.

January results and transfer window round-up on the way!

 

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

January 2016- Part 2

Winning ways are back in Kidderminster. I gave an inspiring team talk before the first game, cinematic style. That seemed to get our confidence back, and it showed on the pitch.

Our game against Guiseley was postponed until February, so I made up for the lack of action by scheduling a Level 10 team for us to beat up on ! I rested most of the starters for this, even though this was the second part of our form-recovery exercise. An expected thrashing took place, although I was hoping for twice as many goals. The young duo of George Taylor and Evan Garnett scored all six goals for us, with Garnett's second goal being particularly class. Our opponents mustered four shots in the game, with one of them zipping just wide of the bar. Funny thing is, they actually outpossessed us. 650 people actually showed up to Aggborough for this little fanfare, and it was fun for all involved, but more importantly reoriented us for league football.
MotM: Evan Garnett

The Aldershot game was judgment day for us, as it was going to dictate if we would continue to challenge for the title or drop off, because anything other than a win here would have been disastrous. Elton Ngwatala opened the scoring early when he tapped in the ball off a brilliant cross from new boy Chris Lester that allowed "Ellie" to shoot on an empty net. However, based on our recent performances, I couldn't stay confident in a win. My fears were confirmed on 30 minutes when Mathew Stevens scored for Aldershot off a powerful header that clipped the underside of the bar and rolled in. But just seven minutes later, future club legend Jeff Goulding restored the lead by receiving the best long ball I have ever seen and notching a cute little header that embarrassed the Aldershot keeper badly. Credit the assist to Ousmane Fane, whose service ball travelled nearly the entire length of the field! In the second half, Chris Lester made his mark on a spectacular debut by blasting in a low cross from Francis-Angol on 52 minutes. He was eventually subbed off to what I can only assume was a standing ovation from Harriers fans. The rest of the second half was uneventful, and we picked up an important win in Aldershot.
MotM: Elton Ngwatala

English Football Update

In the FA Cup 3rd Round Replay, Leicester beat Bradford, Manchester United beat Middlesbrough, and Rotherham outlasted Carlisle to avoid an upset.
In the 4th Round, two of the biggest teams became involved a fascinating tie, with Manchester City knocking off United in a memorable cup derby. Wolves thrashed Stoke City 3-0, Tottenham beat Leeds, and the runs of underdogs Chesterfield, Luton, Notts County, and Crewe came to an end, with Port Vale the only team below the Championship that was able to force a replay. 

Also, the finals of both the League Cup and Johnstone's Paint Trophy are set:
Capital One Cup Final: Tottenham vs. Manchester City
Johnstone's Paint Trophy Final: Walsall vs. Exeter City

Thanks for reading! Transfer window round-up is next, but it may take a while to write . I'll be doing updates every three matches now, since some months can have 5 or more and it doesn't feel right to have that many matches in one post, and too much happens in a whole month anyway. Unless a month has three matches in it or less, there won't be any updates spanning a full month until next season.

Next Matches:
2/2 vs. Guiseley
2/6 vs. Boreham Wood
2/13 vs. Macclesfield Town

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Winter Transfer Window Round-up

Top 3 Transfers (by value):

A huge trio of transfers here. The news stories for these individual transfers have faded away, but this should be enough info. First up, Aymeric Laporte. I had never heard of Laporte before this, but $54 million is a hell of a lot to pay for any player. He'll be a valuable piece for United for the next few years. Next, Mauro Icardi, With Inter Milan now a mid-table side in Italy, you can understand why a player like Icardi wouldn't want to stay there. Arsenal is a very good, and realistic, destination for him as the Gunners are after him in real life right now. The realism of this game never ceases to amaze me. Icardi scored a penalty on his Arsenal debut also. Finally, Aubameyang. I would have preferred him to stay at Dortmund but he is rolling in the riches right now at Real Madrid. I don't know how they'll fit him in with Ronaldo, Rodriguez, and Benzema all still there up top, but he'll be scoring goals in Spain in no time.

My favorite transfers:

Hakim Ziyech, Twente to Sevilla for $20.5 million
Ziyech is an awesome prospect who has scored some crazy goals for Twente in the real world, and his move to the big clubs has come in this save, with Europa League powerhouse Sevilla being his new destination. It will be very fun to track his development once La Liga activates next season.
Lukasz Teodorczyk, Dynamo Kyiv to Inter Milan for $19 million
Inter quickly restocked in the striker department after letting Icardi go, and brought in Polish international Teodorczyk, who has scored 18 goals for Dynamo this season. Always been a fan of this guy, but there are certainly better options for him than Inter at the moment.
Marouane Fellaini, Manchester United to PSG for $12 million
Fellaini has apparently been deemed surplus to requirements at United, and PSG have snapped him up for a relatively low fee. Pretty interesting if you ask me.
Haris Seferovic, Eintracht Frankfurt to Swansea City for $9.75 million
The Swiss international Seferovic already seems to be a worthwhile signing for Swansea, as he has scored 2 goals in his first two Premier League appearances. If he can keep it up, then Swansea, who currently sit at 10th in the PL table, can continue to climb.
Yussuf Poulsen, RB Leipzig to Liverpool for $8.5 million
Poulsen is a very interesting young prospect, and now that he's moved away from Leipzig and into a top club, he can really start to live up to his potential. No goals yet for Liverpool, though.
Anwar El-Ghazi, Ajax to Borussia Dortmund for $8.25 million
El-Ghazi is very similar to Ziyech and Poulsen, as all three are young stars who have transferred from either Holland or Germany to a bigger club, and El-Ghazi is Moroccan like Ziyech. He completes a very exciting trio of young talent that have all made big moves in this transfer window.
Kyle Lafferty, Norwich City to Sassuolo for $800 thousand
This is pretty much the only random transfer I've seen, it's pretty rare to see an Irish/Northern Irish guy playing outside the British Isles, but Sassuolo, who let their two best players go to big clubs, decided the Northern Ireland international Lafferty was right for them. He wasn't wanted at Norwich, so I'll have to see how he gets on in Italy.
Martin Ødegaard, Real Madrid to Watford on season-long loan
Watford? Really? I would have assumed that there would be much bigger clubs going after the wonderkid on loan, but Watford were the only takers. Maybe SI has geared these kinds of things toward Watford as their posterboy club, since the club are sitting in 6th in Premier League in February. So I have to assume their sliders have been bumped a bit. Anyways, Ødegaard scored a brilliant goal in his second Watford game, and if he ever moves away from Real Madrid permanently, I doubt that will be his last Premier League goal on this save.
Other Large Transfers ($15 million and above):
Ignacio Camacho, Malaga to Barcelona for $21.5 million
Javi Martinez, Bayern Munich to PSG for $21.5 million
Vincent Aboubakar, Porto to Napoli for $24.5 million
Nelson Semedo, Benfica to Barcelona for $20 million
Max Arnold, Wolfsburg to Bayern Munich for $19.75 million
Domenico Berardi, Sassuolo to Juventus for $19.25 million
Paulo Oliveira, Sporting CP to Barcelona for $18.75 million
Bruno Peres, Torino to Benfica for $17.5 million
Gabriel Barbosa, Santos to Atletico Madrid for $15.5 million
Other Notable Transfers (Under $15 million)
Omer Toprak, Bayer Leverkusen to Bayern Munich for $14.25 million
Jetro Willems, PSV to Tottenham for $14.25 million
Sime Vrsaljko, Sassuolo to Manchester United for $13.75 million
Muhamed Besic, Everton to AC Milan for $12 million
Dries Mertens, Napoli to Atletico Madrid for $11.25 million
Gino Peruzzi, Leicester to Atletico Madrid for $8.75 million
Dudu, Palmeiras to Everton for $7.75 million
Neven Subotic, Borussia Dortmund to Bayer Leverkusen for $7.25 million
Nacho, Real Madrid to Roma for $5.5 million
Ragnar Klavan, Augsburg to Monaco for $4.4 million
Havard Nordtveit, Borussia Monchengladbach to Fiorentina for $3.6 million
Che Nunnely, Ajax to Manchester United for $3.4 million
Rasmus Elm, Kalmar FF to Sampdoria for $2.1 million
Papiss Cisse, Newcastle United to Stade Rennais for $775 thousand
John Arne Riise, Free Transfer to Jeonbuk Hyundai
 

And finally, there's this:

Wow. Ronaldinho had the entire MLS after his services ever since he left Fluminense, but Sunderland have come out of nowhere to snap him up! Remarkably, this will be the first time the veteran has played in England! I can't wait to see Ronaldinho in action for Sunderland, and hopefully he can help them avoid relegation. I actually tried to get Ronaldinho myself with Kidderminster, as ridiculous as that sounds, just to see if it would work. He actually was interested in joining but once we got to the contract negotiations there was nothing we could do for him. Maybe once we become the best club in England he'll come here to retire... . 

Cheers everyone! See you for the next update!

[Andy Sava]

I wonder how it would have been to have Ronaldinho at the team. What are his attributes like?

[smp20]

Unlucky in the FA Trophy, but still going strong in the league. Love that Ronaldinho has ended up in England

[oriole01]

15 hours ago, Andy Sava said:

I wonder how it would have been to have Ronaldinho at the team. What are his attributes like?

I know, it would be crazy . But Football Manager is realistic and there would be no way I could ever have signed him. Ronaldinho's attributes are still very much in the dark green, with top class technical and mental ratings. For instance, he has 19s in corners, crossing, and dribbling, and 20s in free kicks, flair, and technique. His stamina, fitness, and positioning have all naturally dropped off as he's 35 years old.

9 hours ago, smp20 said:

Unlucky in the FA Trophy, but still going strong in the league. Love that Ronaldinho has ended up in England

Thanks smp, I would hardly consider myself unlucky, we had a bad game in all aspects of it. Now that Ronaldinho's in England, I'm able to see his stats and possibly try to get him on loan, but that's probably as unlikely as signing him as a free agent. Next update in a few days, make sure you follow this thread to get them!

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

February 2016- Part 1

One good result, one slightly disappointing result.

February has been a weird and convoluted month in Kidderminster. A month in which we were supposed to have six games has been reduced to four due to a series of rainouts, scheduling conflicts, opponents in cup ties, and other annoying reasons. First up was Guiseley, who we were supposed to play in January. The scoring opened with an own goal from Ollie Norburn after the ball had ricocheted off of both Jeff Goulding and the goalkeeper before he accidentally tapped it in. Two minutes later, Arthur Gnahoua doubled our advantage on a simple close-range finish that was created on a superb through-ball by Ngwatala. This became his first league goal since November, and only his second in all competitions since then. A wonderful 11 minutes of play concluded with Chris Lester scoring on a goal that... well, I'll let you see what it looked like-

Just curious, do goals like these ever win goal of the month/season? Seems like it hasn't so far when I've seen them. Regardless, an absolutely beautiful hit that had me going bonkers on the other end of the line. And apparently my game looks as good as @Makoto Nakamura's when it gets Youtube-ified . Jack Hartley pulled one back for Guiseley on 68 with a cheap rebound goal, but his efforts were moot. I feel bad for Guiseley, was really looking like they weren't going to go down a month or two ago, but now they're deep in it with only 14 games left to play. Despite the own-goal and his team losing 1-3, Ollie Norburn picked up MotM... crazy stuff.
MotM: Ollie Norburn

Next up, Boreham Wood. My 22nd-placed opponents were preposterously favored to win at home, but for most of the match that was looking to be true. On 23 minutes, Delano Sam-Yorke was picked out from the wing and slid the cross past Dean Snedker and two other defenders. For most of the first and second half, good chances continued to come and go, with James McQuilkin looking like the only sharp knife in the drawer and Luke Woodland failing to convert a golden opportunity to score his first Harriers goal. But McQuilkin was the one who saved us in the 87th minute with a beautiful brace from outside the box that has GotM potential. Wood's forever-tiny crowd left disappointed. I was only able to beat Boreham Wood 1-0 in the reverse fixture at home, so they've been a surprisingly tough three points for me this season.  Lucky for me that I've got a guy named James McQuilkin on my team!
MotM: James McQuilkin

As always, the league table awaits:

I have slipped to three points below Tranmere, but as you can see I have two games in hand with the opportunity to flip the advantage. March 28 is the date that remains circled when I get to try my hand at these guys again, and it only becomes more important by the day. Elsewhere, Cheltenham reach the playoff places for the first time, Altrincham remain within touching distance, Gateshead have really messed up badly and now sit 5 points below the playoffs, Torquay and Aldershot rise, and three unlikely candidates now occupy precarious positions as Forest Green have finally dropped into the relegation zone, with Lincoln and Southport not too far away. All three of these teams held very respectable positions not too long ago. Finally, it appears as if I've doomed Guiseley, who sit at 9 points away from safety.

Unfortunately, there's some small bad news. Jeff Goulding has been hurt for two weeks, which due to our scheduling confusion means he'll miss less games, but he will definitely be out for our next match, leaving the striking duties to the dreadfully inconsistent duo of Arthur Gnahoua and Gurjit Singh. Sounds like fun .

Thanks for reading! Sorry about the lack of updates, but I was on vacation for the past 10 or so days with no access to FM in any form due to my iPad being incompatible with FM Touch. I had a great vacation away from the Harriers, though. Please subscribe to this thread to receive instant updates!

Next Matches:
2/20 vs. Chester
2/23 vs. Macclesfield Town

[-Ironhide-]

I think I was following this at the beginning of the save, but I stopped. Just re-read and the detaill is amazing - this is a very good thread - KUTGW!

[oriole01]

3 hours ago, -Ironhide- said:

I think I was following this at the beginning of the save, but I stopped. Just re-read and the detaill is amazing - this is a very good thread - KUTGW!

Thanks so much Ironhide! It seems that my writing skills have been beneficial to this save so far, glad you're enjoying it. Thanks for the follow as well .

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Chester

Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 33
Date: February 20, 2016
Venue: Aggborough
Attendance: 2,484
Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Lowe, Gjokaj, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Maxwell, Dawson, Ngwatala, Singh, Gnahoua
Used Subs: Hancocks, Lester, Taylor
Out: Jeff Goulding (injured)

Result

Quick note, the only reason this one is full-detail is because it ended up being our last of the month. Our match against Macclesfield- you guessed it- was delayed until March. This really needs to stop .

A real cracker of a match at Aggborough today. Gurjit Singh got us off to a very fast start when he scored the first goal off James McQuilkin's through ball. That lead held until the 26th minute, when Jared Hodgkiss prevented De'Jaune Taylor-Crossdale from running free, but his tackle served the ball on a platter to James Alabi, who got the equalizer on an empty net. On 38, McQuilkin continued his scoring habit when he got free and blasted the ball into the bottom-right on a tight angle. This became his second goal in as many games. Singh extended the lead in the 41st with a header off Elton Ngwatala's cross. Gurjit then tidied up his hat trick in first-half stoppage time with a goal that he bundled across the line from another Ngwatala cross. I tried to turn up the pressure in the second half to try and gain GD points on Tranmere, but it failed and Alabi scored again on 68 on a ball that Snedker spilled whilst on the ground. Once I reverted my strategies to normal, I was rewarded with a delightful goal from George Taylor, the 17-year-old hitting his third of the year from a volley off of Singh's delivery in the 80th minute. 5-2 is a great scoreline for us, which improved our goal differential to 11, but Tranmere's remains at 18. Singh may finally be coming into his own, with the hat trick bringing his goals tally up to 7 on the year. This should get him the starting job over Gnahoua alongside Goulding, who has just returned from injury.

You know what's next...

I'll still remain below Tranmere for the time being, but my two games in hand are also still there, and that will increase to three later this week. The playoff places remain the same. Aldershot continue to unexpectedly rise, and Chester now occupy their lowest place this season and are in relegation danger along with Southport. I'm kind of waiting for everything to be over with and settled, because it really is a long season.

Transfer News

Gibraltar? Why not? I noticed Jake Gosling on the transfer/loan list at Bristol Rovers, who currently sit in the League 2 playoff places, so I decided to get him on loan with the option for a $12k transfer. I'm going to try and train him at central midfielder as our formation doesn't have wide midfielders aside from the attacking wingers. Hopefully he'll give us some good performances and if we get promoted I will more than likely be signing him.

As a result of this, I've sent David Guppy out on loan for the rest of the season at Sutton Coldfield. With Chris Lester also at the club now, he probably wouldn't be getting another first-team chance anyways.

Finally, the Gerry Fischer trial didn't work out, as I started thinking with my head and realized that just because he's Turkmenistani doesn't mean he's special... which would also be the best FMCU title ever . He failed to impress with the Under-21s, so I've let him go back to Montreal to develop.

World/English Football Update

In the FA Cup Fifth Round, the Premier League teams asserted their dominance. Leicester beat Forest, Arsenal beat Wolves, Chelsea beat Blackburn, and Tottenham beat Everton. Sheffield Wednesday were the only Championship team to force a replay. Sunderland and Norwich will also be heading to the Quarter-Finals while Liverpool and Manchester City will also go to a replay.

Now for some continental supercups:
Recopa Sudamericana:
River Plate (Argentina) def. Tigres (Mexico) 1-0 on aggregate
This is River Plate's second straight Recopa, and they also won a similar competition in 1997. So I'll give them three titles total. This also marks their fourth trophy in the past year.
African Super Cup:
ES Tunis (Tunisia) def. ES Setif (Algeria) 1-0
This is ES Tunis' second Super Cup.

I'm quite worried about March, which we are now supposed to play eight (8!) games in, starting with Wrexham on the 1st. Here's to hoping my players' fitness will hold up throughout the month, which will culminate in what can only be considered a league championship game versus Tranmere on the 28th. However, we'll probably be rained out again at least twice so I've got no idea what will end up happening. If everything goes as planned, I'll do the first four games in one update, the next three in another, and the Tranmere game individually. Welcome to the stretch, gentleman! Thanks for reading!

Next Matches:
3/1 vs. Wrexham
3/5 vs. Torquay
3/8 vs. Bromley
3/12 vs. Halifax

[oriole01]

Just a quick notification- I'll be beginning school again tomorrow morning. My summer has gone so fast!  This means that updates will definitely become less frequent. I'll still have a few hours a day to play FM after school and of course on weekends. Hopefully I will be finished with this season soon to start fresh. Have a good day everyone!

oriole

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

March 2016- Part 1

A decent start to the March marathon, some new storylines as well.

First up this month was Wrexham, who have been bouncing in and out of the playoff places in recent weeks and looked to get back into form. We opened the scoring on 34 through Gurjit Singh, who scored on a lovely chip over the keeper from the left wing. We held our lead through the rest of the first half and most of the second, but I felt something coming from Wrexham, who have been the most consistent top-half team this season. James Gray's shot on 74 minutes hit the bar, but Michael Saunders was there for the rebound to beat Dean Snedker and score the equalizer. Gray then scored one for himself nine minutes later after Snedker decided to put his hands on a cross headed toward the post, which fell to Gray for an empty-netter. Snedker's decision-making skills this season have been quite alarming. The situation looked to be getting worse in stoppage time, when Wrexham were awarded a penalty for a "shove" on Gray by Jake Gosling, but Snedker made up for his previous mistake by saving the spot kick in impressive fashion. Strangely, I didn't feel overly disappointed with losing the match, and I felt that we had still played a very good game. Jake Gosling turned in a good shift in his debut despite conceding the penalty, earning MotM for his efforts in the central midfield.
MotM: Jake Gosling

Next up was Torquay. We got off to yet another good start when on 17 Jeff Goulding flicked Elton Ngwatala's cross on to Chris Lester in open space, who fired the ball into the bottom-right. A fast start for Lester, who has already scored three goals for the Harriers. In the 31st minute, JG scored his 16th goal of the season with a nice hit into the bottom-left past Daniel Lavercombe. However, he looked visibly offside and replays confirmed this, but the goal stood and we got away with an officiating oversight. Sorry Torquay! The Gulls weren't good enough at the other end anyway, and were shut out despite having more shots than us. Thus, we walked out of Plainmoor with an easy victory.
MotM: Valentin Gjokaj

We then faced Bromley, who are almost certain to remain in the cellar of the National League no matter what they do. We didn't help them out on this occasion. We got yet another early goal from new man Jake Gosling, who blasted one from outside the box into the bottom-right in the 5th minute. The celebrations at Aggborough were cut short, however, when three minutes later a Louis Dennis cross evaded our entire defence and fell to Steve Pinau at the back post for the equalizer. I was concerned at half-time, but Elton Ngwatala got us back on track in the 50th with a perfectly timed goal at the back post, serviced by Chris Lester's cross. "Ellie" scored again on 85 when he hit a very savable shot at Alan Julian, but the Bromley keeper could only parry it into his own net. I would have loved to score more on Bromley, but 3-1 will have to do.
MotM: Elton Ngwatala

The league table is becoming more and more important this time of year...

We're still behind Tranmere, but we still have games in hand. I keep retaining them every time Tranmere plays, and by the time everything is all square I'm confident that we'll be the ones on top. Wrexham move up to 3rd after all three teams above them suffer multiple losses, including Grimsby who are now out of the zone. Altrincham and Eastleigh still sit within shouting distance of the playoffs, and they're level on points. Halifax have made huge strides since the last update, leaping from 18th to 12th in four games and now look totally safe from relegation. Speaking of relegation, Forest Green have escaped the drop zone, and are replaced by Chester, whose form is abysmal. Lincoln are also in danger, and the fall of both them and Chester is quite remarkable. Finally, Boreham Wood, Guiseley, and Bromley all look to be heading down, with the latter two almost assured of relegation with only 9 games left to play for them both.

Youth Intake

I've unexpectedly received my first youth intake as the Harriers manager! The youth candidates played a game against my existing Under-18s, who are currently bottom of their group. The game finished in a 0-0 draw, so I'm not sure what to make of that. The youth candidates squad screen is gone, but here's the top prospect from this year's intake:

David Kempshall

David is by far the best in the intake, with a 5-star youth team rating and between 3.5 and 4.5-star potential. He could star alongside fellow CM Luke Woodland in the future.

Unfotunately, the rest of the intake wasn't very strong, and the best potential anyone else had was 2 stars. Even more unfortunate, I accidentally have signed them all! Because the duty of signing youth players is set to my HoYD, and he thought that we should sign them all, we have an overflow on the Under-18s! I now have over a dozen useless grey half-star players sitting around, with contract termination being far too expensive . I'll be stuck with one set of poor youth players until the end of next season, and the next set which was just signed until 2018! Only four youth contracts expire this summer, and one is Jonathan Brown who I will re-sign. Very annoying situation for the Harriers youngsters.

English Football Update
More cup action ensued in England in the past few weeks, including the League Cup final.

In the FA Cup 5th Round replay, Manchester City defeated Liverpool and Sheffield Wednesday defeated West Brom.

Capital One Cup Final:
Manchester City def. Tottenham Hotspur 3-2
This is City's fourth League Cup title. They're still in the running for a quadruple, as they're running away with the Premier League, in the FA Cup quarterfinals, and are still active in the Champions League, although they are losing on aggregate to Real Madrid at the moment.

Quick sidenote, some of the foreign leagues that I activated are beginning play, with leagues in Argentina, Colombia, China, Ireland, Singapore, and the MLS underway. Pre-season cups and leagues are taking place in Brazil, Peru, Iceland, and Finland. Other leagues that have activated will start in later spring, and the rest of the leagues will activate between June and July, with the last (Malaysia) activating in November. It's really great to see this unfold!
 

Thanks for reading! I forgot to mention, the number of games in March is now down to seven after one match was rescheduled to April due to a cup conflict. That means April will also be a pretty active month as well. Can't wait to bring you guys the final 10 games of the year, including the Tranmere game and the final 2-3 games in full detail! See you for the next update.

Next Matches:
3/12 vs. Halifax
3/15 vs. Macclesfield
3/26 vs. Woking

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

March 2016- Part 2

Oh dear, that's really not what I wanted at all.

First up, Halifax. I had pulled off a miracle comeback against them in the reverse fixture, and I would have to come back again today. Hamza Bencherif opened the scoring early for Halifax with a header off of a corner. Then, just after the start of the second half, they struck again through 17-goal striker Waide Fairhurst, who volleyed in number 18 at the back post. Luckily for us, Gurjit Singh replied immediately off the restart, taking another great cross from Chris Lester and tapping in past Sam Johnson. The rest of the second half was populated with more chances, but things were looking bleak by the 84th minute. Suddenly, though, an awful tackle by Scott McManus inside the 18-yard-box gave us a penalty and a path back into the match. Arthur Gnahoua then stepped up to put away the equalizer and prevent us from losing all three points to a rapidly-improving Halifax side. However, things would go further downhill from here.
MotM: Jake Gosling

Next, Macclesfield. I had shut the Silkmen out twice this season in both the league and the FA Cup, and since we were playing at Aggborough, the odds seemed well in our favour. Guess what, they weren't! We played our usual game throughout this match, but couldn't find the net early unlike several other games. That proved to be a big disadvantage, as on 33 minutes, Macclesfield took the lead. Theo Bailey-Jones' first close-range effort (as a result of Ian Vicars' cross) was well-saved by Dean Snedker, but there was no way to stop his second. I was very much expecting a prompt equalizer and then a few more strikes for good measure. but nothing came for the Harriers. Even after Aaron McGowan was sent off on 59 for his second yellow card, we still couldn't create an advantage from our advantage.  The best chance to equalize fell to Gurjit Singh, but despite his good form he couldn't hit the ball past Shwan Jalal in net. Snedker did a good job holding down the fort for the rest of the match, but one would be the deciding blow. 
MotM: Theo Bailey-Jones

Finally, Woking. Our players started dropping like flies before the start of this match. Zaine Francis-Angol and Jake Gosling left for international duty. Luke Woodland, Ousmane Fane, and Elton Ngwatala also missed the action with injuries. Worst of all, Ngwatala will be out until mid-April with a thigh strain, meaning he'll miss the Tranmere game and at least two others. That gave the opportunity to David Guppy, who after rejecting a loan to Sutton Coldfield is now receiving his last chance at first-team football this season. You can see why we were unprepared to face Woking's threat, despite having almost two weeks in between matches. This was a case of SSDD for the Harriers. On 21 minutes, Shane Williams' free kick met Joshua Stockwell, who hit a powerful header past Snedker to give Woking the lead. I was instantly relieved on 37 when David Guppy's header went over the line- or not. Even with the goalkeeper standing in the net with the ball in his hand, no goal was called. The entire National League net worth probably couldn't buy goal-line technology, so I was really screwed over right there. Therefore, I headed into half-time concerned again, and the second half didn't get any better. More time and more opportunities went to waste, and the game was down the drain before we knew it. Extremely frustrating results for us at the moment with the biggest game of the season up next. Great!
MotM: Shane Williams

A look at the league table now beckons...

 

So yes, we're still behind Tranmere despite having many, many chances to go ahead of them. It's now been 9 weeks since I last held the league lead at the end of a matchday! I still do have a game in hand, but it's against Tranmere themselves, so if I don't win or at least draw, it could be curtains for the league title. Pressure's on in Kidderminster, gentlemen. Elsewhere, Wrexham have quickly moved straight into the title race with more wins, but I have a game in hand on them as well. The battle for the final playoff spot continues, and it's most likely going to be between Woking, Cheltenham, and Grimsby from here on in barring either Eastleigh or Altrincham getting hot. Aldershot also move big, jumping up to 12th just like Halifax have done recently. Forest Green have labored well out of the relegation zone, and are now a win away from the 50-point mark that seems to indicate safety. After an absolutely awful decline, Lincoln City are finally in the relegation zone, and are in a battle with Chester, Barrow, Boreham Wood, and Guiseley to stay up, with Bromley only a few losses away from guaranteed relegation.

English Football Update

In the FA Cup Sixth Round, Arsenal defeated Sunderland and Sheffield Wednesday shocked Norwich with a 3-1 victory to keep the Championship alive into the semis. Chelsea vs. Man City and Tottenham vs. Leicester will both be replayed. The world was also very active recently with more World Cup Qualifiers, friendlies, and African Cup qualifiers.

The FA Trophy Final is also set:
Final- Cheltenham vs. Lincoln City
An all-red battle for the non-league crown. I really, really wish I was still active in this competition, because my chances at getting any silverware this season are decreasing with each match. 

So now the attention turns to the next match against Tranmere. You can just put this one in the books as the league championship. Whoever wins will more than likely receive enough of a confidence boost to see out the rest of the season, and if it's Tranmere, I'm going to have to go to the playoffs for promotion. A few players will still be out for this one, including Woodland and Ngwatala. My youth players have also been picking up plenty of injuries, which might be a further sign that the game is trying to screw me at the end of the season . I've given my guys another big mid-week pep talk, and it seems to have gotten them hyped up and ready for this game, which will be full-detail and up here tomorrow. I am really hoping and praying that I have a good report for you guys. Thanks for reading! 

Next Match:
3/28 vs. Tranmere Rovers
(Let's get it.)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Tranmere Rovers
Pre-Game Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 40
Date: March 28, 2016
Venue: Aggborough
Attendance: 3,591
Kidderminster Line-up: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Lowe, Gjokaj, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Gosling, Lester, Guppy, Goulding, Singh
Used Subs: Dawson, Gnahoua, Fane
Out: Woodland (Injured), Maxwell (Suspended), Ngwatala (Injured)

Are you ready to rumble? Today was the date that was circled for many months, one that served as the potential do-or-die moment for the Harriers season, one that would prove whether we were worthy of the title or not. So much preparation went into this match and the days leading up to it have been very nervous in Kidderminster. Pep talks, extreme training, number crunching, and lots of sweating. So would we be rewarded for this preparation and effort with a W?
 

Spoiler

Not quite. I guess a "league championship game" can't really end in a draw.

A brilliant match at Aggborough for the neutrals, but an open-ended result for us. The home fans were greeted well early on with two great goals from Chris Lester. In the 10th, he broke away from 3 defenders in the box, turned, and unleashed a beauty into the bottom-left. Six minutes later, he followed up with a blast from the edge of the area into the top-shelf. On the other side of the screen, I was running around my house and cheering... yeah, maybe I shouldn't have done that. I say such a thing because on 36 Michael Higdon pulled one after he back got open on a through-ball and blasted the ball past Snedker, showing that Tranmere meant business. Despite our resilience in the second half, we still couldn't hold off our rivals' attacking threat. James Norwood came on as a sub in the 54th minute, and ten minutes later, he scored the equalizer. An attempted clearance bounced off of Jake Gosling's head and fell to Norwood, who lashed in the volley to give the Rovers the momentum. Despite the setbacks, we continued to play well, but could not find another goal. The closest anyone came was Chris Lester again, who would have secured a hat trick had his close-range shot not been saved, or had he passed it into the centre of the box....  The feeling that I should have won a game when I didn't has never been stronger than today.  Almost everyone on the squad had a very solid game, with only a few exceptions. We went in for the kill early, but only wounded our opponents in the end. So from here on in, us Harriers will have to act more like the apex predators we are to rule the roost. 
MotM: Chris Lester

So nothing really changed on our part, but here's the league table regardless...

The title race remains intact, with some added competitors. My game in hand still remains against Tranmere, so it will still leave me well in the thick of things come May. The situation below me is getting scarier every week, with Woking and Cheltenham both right on my heels and even Grimsby and Wrexham have a realistic chance to overtake me. With these teams, there's no game in hand to save me from them, and now missing the playoffs is becoming a possibility if the lackluster form continues. Yes, it's been 4 games without a win, my worst form since the early stages of the season. Fortunately, Tranmere have a harder schedule than us going down the stretch, as they still have multiple top-6 opponents on their schedule. The best team remaining on my schedule is 7th-placed Altrincham, and everyone else is outside the top half except Dover. I haven't looked at the other teams' schedules. Outside the big time, Wrexham have quickly fallen from 3rd to 6th, and Bromley must win all but one of their remaining games to have a shot at survival. The only reason I mention Bromley so much is because they offered me a job at the start of my career. Oh, how good things could have been for them had I just said yes.

Thanks for reading! With six games to go, I'm very eager to move on to next season, which will hopefully take place in a higher division . Get ready for do-or-die time, all you Harriers fans!  Welcome to April!

Next Matches:
4/2 vs. Altrincham
4/5 vs. Lincoln City
4/9 vs. Welling

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

April 2016- Part 1

Our first three results in April resemble a Bolivian flag... which is a pretty irrelevant statement.

First up, Altrincham. This was the toughest game left on my schedule, but it didn't look that way at first. This was a very level match that looked destined for nil-nil throughout the first half and most of the second, but the floodgates opened on 72 when substitute Michael Rankine, who had come on just four minutes previous, made an instant impact when he headed Andy Nugent's cross into the right side of the net. Four minutes later, Damian Reeves sealed the game off for the Robins with a close-range tally off Jimmy Lee's low cross. This continued the bad streak and had me very, very mad considering that we played a very decent match.
MotM: Damian Reeves

Well, the Lincoln game was quite spectacular, but I really needed a green circle. In the 5th minute, Lincoln were awarded a penalty for a trip on Greg Tempest by Jared Hodgkiss, and Alan Power stepped up to deliver their first goal, hitting the ball straight down the middle but still beyond Snedker, who opted to choose a side. We equalized through McQuilkin after he received Adam Dawson's cross in the middle of the box and knocked it home. We followed that up in the second half and gained the lead through Gnahoua's goal, who got ahead of his markers and bent the ball past Paul Farman, although there were suspicions of offside. Power scored again on 68 with a low volley off Sam Hoskins' cross, once again leveling the scores. I commanded my men to go forward again, but the next goal was Lincoln City's. On-loan Accrington Stanley youngster Max Hazeldine poked in a volley off Lee Beevers' cross, delighting the home fans for a third time. Adam Dawson stepped up on 84, scoring a clumsy header that barely made it over Farman's head and into the net. Credit the assist to Zaine Francis-Angol. At this point, I was ready to park the bus and call it a day, but just before 90 minutes Jack Muldoon worked around four Harriers defenders and scored, and as soon as the ball crossed the line I felt the sudden urge to find the nearest cliff and cannonball of off it.... However, I got lucky once more in stoppage time when Adam Dawson hit a low forward pass from 30 yards... and went by everybody and into the net. I couldn't quite believe the goal, as it sounded like it took a deflection but Dawson was still credited. We were able to prevent any more silly goals and hold on for dear life, but in truth neither side deserved to lose this game. Nevertheless, this shouldn't have been the result against 21st-placed Lincoln, especially considering that we thrashed them 5-1 in the home leg. All I can really say is that Kidderminster vs. Lincoln was a fixture that didn't disappoint the goal-lovers this year . 
MotM: Adam Dawson

The trip to Welling was a must-win with other teams encroaching behind me and gaining ground in front of me, so I was glad to finally end the terrible run of form at Park View Road. It also marked the return of Elton Ngwatala, which was a big bonus. Arthur Gnahoua opened the scoring very early after he tidied up a rebound that came off Jeff Goulding's post shot. We looked the likely candidates to get the game's second goal, but instead Welling scored with their first shot on target off Josh Cooke's header. On 32, Goulding, who I had injected with confidence before the game, gave us the lead and ended his goal drought on a snapshot past Marek Rodak. A shot by Gnahoua on 68 looked a very routine save for Rodak, but despite getting both gloves on the ball, it still popped behind him and into the net for Arthur's second of the day and 16th of the season. That goal would become crucial to the victory, as on 80 minutes Welling substitute Michael Bakare scored a wide-open goal, setting up a nervy final ten. Despite pressure from our opponents, we held on and claimed a much-needed three points.
MotM: Jeff Goulding

Unfortunately, the rest of the league wasn't kind on us through these first 3 April games...

If there was anything I was going to predict three weeks ago about the state of the table, it definitely wouldn't have Cheltenham leading the league with three games left. It seemed improbable at the last update, but the Robins have won six straight league games and also have an opportunity for FA Trophy silverware in the upcoming final. They've overtaken both me and Tranmere, and with an easy schedule left for them, they could very probably hold on to steal the title. My only hope to catch them is winning my last three games and hoping for a slip-up... or two. Tranmere's schedule is still difficult, giving me the impetus to finally finish above them, but they're not the ones I'm going to be chasing now. After taking a humiliating 7-0 beating by Eastleigh, Grimsby now sit 5 points away from the playoff zone, and therefore the field looks nearly set. Aldershot have surprised the entire league by moving from 18th to 9th in a month, and don't look set on stopping. Towards the bottom, a massive win by Chester over Lincoln gives them a four-point cushion over the Imps and Boreham Wood, who are both struggling to avoid the drop. At the very bottom, Bromley have finally been assured of relegation, with Guiseley sure to be next. A lot of late movement has kept this league very exciting heading into the final three games, with plenty still up for grabs.

Thanks for reading! I've decided to backtrack on doing all three of the final matches in full-detail. Instead, the next two will be in one post and the last game against Southport will be full. Get ready for the end of my very first FM season!

Next Matches:
4/16 vs. Barrow
4/23 vs. Dover

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

April 2016- Part 2

We've done exactly what we've needed to do in our penultimate two games. Plenty of drama in both!

My form against relegation-threatened teams has been shaky recently, so I was wary of our prospects against Barrow, who had beaten us 4-1 in the away fixture. Of course, this was a must-win game for us with 4 points separating us from the leaders. The match was unsurprisingly even, with chances going by the wayside for both of us. When there were still no goals on the board by the late second half, I was forced to throw everyone forward and assign every possible instruction that would increase our chances of scoring. With the final whistle looming in added time, club-favorite striker Jeff Goulding stepped up to the plate and unleashed a beautiful cannonball from just outside the box and into the top corner, sending Harriers fans into raptures at Aggborough. A very tough and hard-fought game for us, but the win was well worth the pressure.
MotM: Jeff Goulding

Our next must-win game came against Dover, but we also needed other results to go our way. Cheltenham needed to drop points at 11th-placed Macclesfield to keep us and other teams in the running for the title, or else the Robins would lift the trophy. We absolutely dominated in the first half, creating several good-looking chances that required saves from opposing keeper Andy Rafferty. Arthur Gnahoua took a bad knock early on, but I decided not to sub him off as his condition started to recover. Despite our chances, no goals came in the first half for either side, and we entered the break still needing three points. To my relief, we finally took the lead on 64, when Arthur Gnahoua volleyed in Adam Dawson's cross at the back post, giving everyone at Aggborough hope for the title with Macclesfield and Cheltenham locked at 1-1.  Fourteen minutes later, however, things took a bad turn when Valentin Gjokaj's marking error allowed 33-goal striker Stefan Payne open space to blast the equalizer past Dean Snedker on the run for number 34. With only 12 minutes to go, we needed another miracle to keep on. We continued to dominate possession, and my manager shouts from the touchline seemed to help us keep going. And then it happened. Despite being injured early in the match and failing to capitalize on so many chances all season, Arthur Gnahoua saved our lives with a goal just seconds before the final whistle, taking Jake Gosling's throughball and beating Rafferty for the biggest goal of his career. Just minutes before, Macclesfield had scored twice to finish off Cheltenham at 3-1, and the dream continued for the Harriers into the final game of the season. Je t'aime, Monsieur Gnahoua. (He's not even French ).
MotM: Arthur Gnahoua

So where does that leave us?

Within touching distance. If I win and Cheltenham don't, the league is ours. But unless there are some funky scorelines, a draw won't be enough even if they lose. My last game is against Southport, theirs against Lincoln, who will be playing their hardest to avoid relegation. Wrexham could also win the title if both us and Cheltenham drop points, which would be even more of a coup then what Cheltenham did a few weeks ago. Elsewhere, the league has really sorted itself out in these last two games. Us, Wrexham, Woking, and Tranmere have all secured playoff spots, but what's surprising is Tranmere dropping down to 5th, and they can only finish as high as 4th. Certainly didn't see that coming. In turn, Grimsby miss out on the playoffs after falling upon bad form. Aldershot move up, Gateshead move down again, and everyone from Southport and above has been guaranteed safety. In the relegation battle, Braintree look the most secure, while Barrow and Chester are going to want to win to avoid the drop. Lincoln and Boreham Wood are in the same situation. Finally, Guiseley have also secured relegation as expected. Can't wait for the last game!

English/European Football Update

In the FA Cup Sixth Round Replay, Manchester City defeated Chelsea and Leicester City defeated Tottenham on penalties.

FA Cup Semi-Final:
Manchester City def. Arsenal 1-0
Sheffield Wednesday def. Leicester City 3-0

UEFA Champions League Quarter-Final:
FC Barcelona def. Real Madrid 2-0 on aggregate
Manchester United def. Sevilla 3-1 on aggregate
Arsenal def. Bayern Munich 2-2 on away goals
Juventus def. Chelsea 4-2 on aggregate

UEFA Europa League Quarter-Final:
Liverpool def. PSV 4-3 on aggregate
Marseille def. Fiorentina 3-3 on away goals
Borussia Dortmund def. CSKA Moscow 3-0 on aggregate
Schalke def. Benfica 4-2 on aggregate

Thanks for reading! Expect the Southport game up later today. If I don't win the league and there are playoffs, those games will be up sometime this week in full-detail. Wish me luck!

Next Match:
4/30 vs. Southport  

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Southport vs. Kidderminster Harriers
Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Matchday 46
Date: April 30, 2016
Venue: Haig Avenue (Away)
Attendance: 1006
Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Lowe, Gjokaj, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Gosling, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua
Used Subs: Lester, Maxwell, Singh

Result

Great way to end our season. The scoring started early when on 10 minutes Elton Ngwatala linked up with Zaine Francis-Angol and guided the ball into the bottom right skillfully. Half of an hour later, Jeff Goulding worked around two defenders in the box and scored his 19th of the year into the bottom-left. Heading into half-time, we had a secure lead. Ten minutes into the second, however, Southport got on the board after Dean Snedker came out to the right wing to try and stop Andrai Jones' cross, but could only parry it right into the center, where Courtney Cameron happily scored on an empty net. We were still able to contain our opponents after this, although I would have loved to fire one last dagger at the end of this game.
MotM: Gary Jones

So with the required win in the bag, our attentions turned to the Cheltenham game, where anything other than a win for them would mean a title for us. Would our efforts be enough?
 

Spoiler

Nope.

With my fate out of my hands and my rivals playing a relegation-zone team, I couldn't have been too confident of a triumph. Although I did think Lincoln would play hard to avoid relegation, Cheltenham clearly wanted the title more, and proved themselves worthy of the victory in the end, despite not being anywhere near the lead until last month. Their win leaves the table looking like this...

 At the end of the long season, I'm glad its all settled, despite not having a trophy in my virtual hands. There wasn't much movement on the final day, but with losses by both Boreham Wood and Lincoln City they confirmed their relegation. Finishing just one or two points off the title hurts, but I won't waste time mulling over what could have been. If we want to earn promotion, we'll do it the hard way, which is going to happen in the playoffs. Since Woking finished 5th, I'll be playing them first away and then home in the semi-finals. If we advance, we'll be playing the winner of a mouth-watering matchup between Wrexham and Tranmere at Wembley.  I truly believe that we're the most deserving of promotion among the playoff teams, and I'm going to try my hardest to make that a reality not only for the Harriers, but for Worcestershire as a whole!

Thanks for reading! First leg will be up tomorrow.

Next Matches:
5/5 vs. Woking (A)
5/8 vs. Woking (H)

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Woking vs. Kidderminster Harriers
Pre-Match Scenarios

Vanarama National League, Playoff Semi-Final First Leg
Date: May 5, 2016
Venue: Kingfield Stadium (Away)
Attendance: 5,800
Kidderminster Lineup: Snedker, Hodgkiss, Lowe, Gjokaj, Francis-Angol, McQuilkin, Gosling, Dawson, Ngwatala, Goulding, Gnahoua
Used Subs: Lester, Singh

Result

That's not good. A fiercely contested match that had just about every fan on the edge of their seat saw us lose to Bruno Andrade's goal on 61 minutes. Andrade beat Francis-Angol to Ryan Sellers' cross at the back post, and was only feet away from the net when he made contact with his head. Earlier on, I was able to withstand Woking's onslaught, which I thought at least earned me a 0-0 draw, but football will always be cruel as long as luck is involved. Our best chances were all saved by opposing keeper Jake Cole, and we go into our home leg needing to win by at least 2 goals to advance in 90 minutes. Please don't let this be the end...

In the other playoff match, Wrexham defeated Tranmere 1-0.

European Football Update 

UEFA Champions League Semi-Finals:
Manchester United def. FC Barcelona 3-2 on aggregate
Juventus def. Arsenal  5-4 on aggregate
A surprise finals appearance for Manchester United, who didn't look very strong in the group stage but have stepped up in the knockout stages to take down the likes of PSG, Sevilla, and now Barcelona. Final will be played at San Siro.
UEFA Europa League Semi-Finals:
Schalke 04 def. Liverpool 3-2 on aggregate
Borussia Dortmund def. Marseille 6-2 on aggregate
An all-German final awaits at St. Jakob Park. Schalke upset Liverpool and have made a statement run, but probably won't be favored against a Dortmund team who have still been scoring boatloads since the departure of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Real Madrid at the deadline.

I forgot to mention May awards. Arthur Gnahoua came in third for National League Player of the Month, and Jeff Goulding's last-minute goal against Barrow placed third in Goal of the Month. However, I still have not made an appearance in Manager of the Month since I won for the only time in October. Guess I'll have to wait till next year for another shot.

Thanks for reading! I'm going to try my absolute hardest to get through this tie with a victory. Second leg will be up tomorrow. 
 

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

Kidderminster Harriers vs. Woking
Result

Screw all the fanfare, the pre-game scenarios, the witty analysis. This sucks. It really, really does. We led 2-1 up until before half-time. After it, they kept scoring and no matter how many we put past in return they just would not stop. You can call me gutted, depressed, shell-shocked, or whatever. All the time I put in to this save and this thread has just gone to waste. I think back on all the games I played, and if just one more result that didn't go my way did, we wouldn't be in all this mess.  So many good moments cut out by two terrible games. I don't know if I'm going to do a second season with FM17 coming out, I may just decide to start fresh there. I'll keep you posted on that decision when I make it. I hope all of you who read this did enjoy it, and if I decide not to continue I promise I will have new content coming in FM17. I understand I may be overreacting, and you guys have experienced this kind of thing before many times, but on my very first season on my very first save on Football Manager, the pain is fresh and new. If you have any special suggestions for coping with play-off losses, leave a message at the tone. .

Thanks for reading.
-oriole

 

 

[noikeee]

Man, I know it sucks, but that's nothing. I remember being stuck for like 4 or 5 years in the Slovakian 2nd division... or stuck with Compostela for 4 or 5 years too in the Spanish 2nd division... or being sacked after 4 seasons of underperformance with CSKA Sofia, having to eat humble pie, start all over again with a new manager and new tactics and then only come good after 2 more years.

I've no idea how good Kidderminster are for that division, but I've checked out the real life results and they finished... 23rd and got relegated. You finished 2nd. That's 21 positions above their real life performance. I think you can be very happy you overachieved dramatically, rather than stress at losing a playoff. A couple of new signings and the players gaining experience and I'm sure you'd top the league and go up automatically next season, without even having to deal with the playoffs. And with one more year you might well have a much better squad for dealing with the division above. Sometimes getting promoted too quickly might lead to an even harsher shock...

[oriole01]

6 hours ago, noikeee said:

Man, I know it sucks, but that's nothing. I remember being stuck for like 4 or 5 years in the Slovakian 2nd division... or stuck with Compostela for 4 or 5 years too in the Spanish 2nd division... or being sacked after 4 seasons of underperformance with CSKA Sofia, having to eat humble pie, start all over again with a new manager and new tactics and then only come good after 2 more years.

I've no idea how good Kidderminster are for that division, but I've checked out the real life results and they finished... 23rd and got relegated. You finished 2nd. That's 21 positions above their real life performance. I think you can be very happy you overachieved dramatically, rather than stress at losing a playoff. A couple of new signings and the players gaining experience and I'm sure you'd top the league and go up automatically next season, without even having to deal with the playoffs. And with one more year you might well have a much better squad for dealing with the division above. Sometimes getting promoted too quickly might lead to an even harsher shock...

Thanks for the kind words noikee. I was extremely frustrated last night and wasn't thinking too clearly, I'll definitely be doing a second season on here at least until FM17 is released, and probably after it as well. However, since part of my overall objective was to get promoted in my first two seasons, if I don't go up this season I will definitely be ending this save mainly for FM17 reasons. 

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

2015/16 End of Season Review

So, if you're just tuning in or haven't checked in for a while, you can see here that my first season as Harriers manager ended without silverware, as surprising as it may have seemed when I was cruising atop the league in autumn and winter. Finishing runner-up is certainly not bad, and such a finish would have warranted promotion in every other division above me, but finishing one point off the title was the crushing blow that probably was the driving force behind our humiliating playoff exit to Woking.  I was happy with our FA Cup performance, but not our FA Trophy run, which saw us struggle against a level 7 team for the better part of our match and then be dispatched by Grimsby in the next round. I'd agree with the game's choice of match of the season and moment to forget, the Lincoln game was very fun just as the Gateshead game was quite the opposite.
Fixtures 1       Fixtures 2         Fixtures 3

Awards
 
Manager's Player of the Year: It's also James McQuilkin for me too. He was the most reliable, consistent, and likable player all year long. Forget what I said in the pre-season, if McQuilkin continues to produce on the level that he did this year, he'll be staying at this club for a long time.

Goal of the Season:

A lovely late strike from McQuilkin that saved our skins against Boreham Wood.

Squad Stats

I'll show you these numbers (so you don't have to look for them)
Top Goalscorer- Arthur Gnahoua (20, not including 2 goals in the playoff that weren't counted for whatever reason)
Most Assists- Zaine Francis-Angol (11)
Most Appearances- Dean Snedker (51)
Most MotMs- Adam Dawson (7)
Worst Discipline- Luke Maxwell (10 yellows, 3 reds)
Highest Average Rating- Jake Gosling(7.49)
Worst Average Rating- George Taylor/Dean Snedker (6.78)
Other players who made competitive senior appearances- Jonathan Brown, Bobby-Joe Taylor, Kelvin Langmead, Tyler Higgins, Jordan Jones, Daniel Sweeney, Evan Garnett, Reece Jacobs, Kennedy Digie, Tyrone Williams

Now, here's the overall league goalscoring list:

Goulding and Gnahoua are well-represented with 19 league goals apiece. Dan Holman had an unstoppable second half, as well as his teammate Emmanuel Dieseruvwe, while Stefan Payne regressed in his scoring later on.

Youth Development

I was certainly impressed with our youth development this year, as prospects David Guppy, George Taylor, Jordan Tunnicliffe, Daniel Sweeney, Jonathan Brown, and James Hancocks all improved mightily. The addition of David Kempshall at the youth intake was also very welcome, as he shows the potential to be great. The next wave of Harriers are of course...incoming!

Contracts and Personnel News
With the end of the season came a huge round of contracts to extend... or not.  There is good news and bad news in this respect, so I guess I'll start positive.
The good news is this:

Maxwell's coming back for another go! We'll have to work on his discipline this year, as he got himself booked and sent off more times than any Eastern European fullback could this season . 

However, the bad news is that Elton Ngwatala has refused to open contract negotiations, and he has made it clear that he will leave the club at the end of June. An absolute shame that we couldn't keep him, but he looks destined for greener pastures and better things, which even promotion this season probably wouldn't satisfy. I'll be looking for youngster Daniel Sweeney to step up in his place, but I've also begun shopping for someone that can fill the void he'll leave. Jake Gosling also won't be joining us on a permanent basis, as despite having full transfer offers accepted by Bristol Rovers, he also won't even hear a contract offer. One final bit of bad news is that Jared Hodgkiss got injured in the playoffs, and will be injured until at least late August next season. With no sufficient backup, I'll be looking for somebody to fill in and then play a utility defence role later on once Hodgkiss returns. 

Re-Upping- Several key players have accepted a new contract, including Jeff Goulding, Arthur Gnahoua, Keith Lowe, Dean Snedker, Gurjit Singh, Adam Dawson, Luke Woodland, and Ousmane Fane. All eligible youth players re-signed, and I even caved and let Tyrone Williams on for another year! Wow.
Farewell- I have decided not to renew the contracts of senior players Jamies Spencer, Aman Verma, and Lathaniel Rowe-Turner, the latter two spent the entire season out on loan. Youth player Evan Garnett will be released along with a few other low-potential young players.

Miscellaneous
General Club Info      Finances     Manager Profile

So What's the Verdict, Doc?
(Or, how'd your season go?)

Regardless of the last couple results, I had an absolute blast in my first Kidderminster, and in turn, first Football Manager season.  Slated for relegation at the beginning of the season, I was able to pull together a team of rather ragtag footballers and get simply amazing results on the pitch. My tactic held up for nearly the entire season, although I could sense some teams figuring me out on the second go-around. The tactic will probably be different next year, unless my current one starts bringing up good results again. We as a unit did exceptionally well together, and at one point in the season I was certain we couldn't lose because we were just working so cohesively to win games. There will always be mistakes made in football, and the season sure didn't come without some moments that urged me to pull a "ragequit".  Just one example was Arthur Gnahoua's trend of firing the ball directly at the goalkeeper for several consecutive months . However, the season absolutely came full of great moments, and those will drown out the negative results any day of the week. We came so close to an unlikely promotion this season, and we're hungrier than ever to finish the job in the upcoming go-around. Losing Elton Ngwatala will be an enormous disadvantage for us, but throughout the season we made the better of difficult situations, and this should be no different. I'm definitely looking forward to next year, and by the time we reach May again I'm confident we won't have to worry about any sort of playoffs or pressure. This was a great first season, and it'll probably be the most memorable of my fledgling Football Manager career. On to the next one, all you Harriers fans!

My expectations for next season (screw the board):
Vanarama National League- Win it
FA Cup- Reach the Second Round
FA Trophy- Reach the semi-final
Personal- Win Manager of the Year, at least 3 Manager of the Months, have a player win major award

Thanks for reading! Let me know if there's any more information/pictures you'd like to see of anything within the save. I'll have an English/European/World Football Yearly review up in the morning recapping all the competition winners from the past year. I'll probably be starting the new season sometime next week. Until then, take care! 

-oriole

[oriole01]

Kidderminster Harriers

English/European/Rest of World Round-Up

Europe:
UEFA Champions League Final-
Manchester United def. Juventus 4-1
This is United's 4th Champions League title, their first since 2008. 

UEFA Europa League Final-
Schalke 04 def. Borussia Dortmund 2-0
This is Schalke's 2nd Europa League title, their last one in 1997.

England:

Barclays Premier League-
Winners:
Manchester City (5th title)

Champions League (listed by final position)-
Tottenham, Arsenal, Liverpool

Europa League (same listing)-
Swansea, Chelsea, Watford
Manchester United also get into next year's Champions League for winning this year's editon, despite finishing 8th in the league.

Relegated-
Sunderland, Southampton, Newcastle United

Awards-
Manager of the Year:
Manuel Pellegrini, Man City

Player of the Year:
Hector Bellerin, RB, Arsenal

Top Goalscorer:
Jamie Vardy, ST, Leicester City (23 league goals)

Highest Average Rating:
Hector Bellerin (8.20)

Season Recap-
This year's Premier League went as expected up top, but went crazy everywhere else. Manchester City cruised to a comfortable title victory, winning the league by 12 points with only four losses. Tottenham finished in their highest position since 1990, when they were 3rd, and finished just above their arch-rivals Arsenal, who once again settled for 3rd place. Outside the top 4, things became a little more unusual. Swansea City finished in 5th, and secured their first ever Europa League berth through league performance. Watford also secured their first-ever European appearance with a 7th-placed finish, with holders Chelsea sandwiched between the two. United finished 8th, one of their worst league performances in years, but still managed to win the Champions League and secure another berth in that competition. Norwich City finished 14th, but held high positions for nearly half of the year. The biggest storyline at the bottom was Southampton's relegation. This was largely due to their unbelievable Europa League run, which saw them reach the Round of 16 after dominating qualifying and their group. West Ham had a similar run, beating the likes of eventual finalists Dortmund to reach the Round of 32, where they went out to Lazio. West Ham too were nearly relegated, finishing just off the drop in 17th. Bournemouth survived their first top-flight season in 16th, and Newcastle had a truly awful season in dead last, notching just 23 points and 4 wins. 

Sky Bet Championship-
Winners:
Derby County

Promoted:
Hull City, Brentford (via playoffs)

Other Playoff Teams:
Birmingham City, Cardiff City, Leeds United

Relegated:
MK Dons, Brighton, Rotherham United

Awards-
Manager of the Year:
Tim Sherwood, Derby County

Player of the Year:
Ahmed Elmohamady, RWB, Hull

Top Goalscorer:
Lasse Vibe, AM/ST, Brentford (34 league goals)

Highest Average Rating:
Ahmed Elmohamady (8.01)

Season Recap-
Well-deserved promotions for Derby, Hull, and Brentford. Derby will return to the Premier League after being embarassed last time out, and Hull bounce right back. Brentford secure their first top-flight season in a very long time, and hope to stay up at the first time of asking like Bournemouth. Real-life promotion contenders Middlesbrough, Sheffield Wednesday, and Ipswich Town were off the pace in mid-table, and the biggest shock of the season was Brighton getting relegated! Bristol City had an impressive season, finishing just off the playoffs in 7th, well above their pre-season projection. Finally, Wolves finished in 13th, much like in real life last year. No Chinese takeovers to save us here .

Sky Bet League 1-
Winners:
Barnsley

Promoted:
Oldham Athletic, Rochdale (via playoffs)

Other Playoff Teams:
Swindon Town, Sheffield United, Wigan Athletic

Relegated:
Bury, Crewe, Walsall, Shrewsbury

Awards-
Manager of the Year:
Peter Grant, Barnsley

Player of the Year:
Yanic Wildschut, RM, Wigan

Top Goalscorer:
Sam Winnall, ST, Barnsley (25 league goals)

Highest Average Rating:
Jake Hesketh, CAM, Burton Albion (7.62)

Season Recap-
Much like in real life, Barnsley ran away with the league, winning by 15 points. However, the other promotion spots did not go as planned. Oldham and Rochdale were surprisingly promoted, above the likes of Wigan and Sheffield United. Bradford City finished down in 11th, and Burton Albion in 9th.  Four poor teams got relegated at the bottom, with Shrewsbury in particular having a terrible season.

Sky Bet League 2-
Winners:
Leyton Orient

Promoted:
Plymouth Argyle, Portsmouth, Bristol Rovers (via playoffs)

Other Playoff Teams:
Wycombe, Carlisle United, Northampton Town

Relegated:
Crawley Town, York City

Awards-
Manager of the Year:
Darrell Clarke, Bristol Rovers

Player of the Year:
Jay Simpson, ST, Leyton Orient

Top Goalscorer:
Jay Simpson, Leyton Orient (31 league goals)

Highest Average Rating:
Duane Holmes, CAM, Oxford United (7.58)

Season Recap-
Portsmouth finally got the promotion that has eluded them for a few seasons now. They'll be looking to rise back up the leagues. Champions Leyton Orient and Plymouth Argyle also earned their promotion. Bristol were promoted, just like in real life, but they required a shootout in the playoff final to do it. Wimbledon and Oxford finished well off the pace, and Northampton was on the losing end of Bristol's shootout. Dagenham comfortably survived, so Crawley and York will join us in the National League next season.

Vanarama National League-
Winners:
Cheltenham Town

Playoff Final:
Woking def. Tranmere Rovers 3-1
Woking promoted

Other Playoff Teams;
Kidderminster, Wrexham, Tranmere Rovers

Relegated:
Lincoln City, Boreham Wood, Guiseley, Bromley

Awards-
Manager of the Year:
Gary Johnson, Cheltenham

Player of the Year:
Bruno Andrade, RAM, Woking 

Top Goalscorer:
Dan Holman, ST, Cheltenham (34 league goals)

Highest Average Rating:
Bruno Andrade, Woking (7.56)

Season Recap-
I've already given my season recap for our league previously, but there is one new thing to add. Woking went on to win the playoffs after putting us away, and will play their first ever season of league football in 2016-17. They're pretty much my least favorite team in the world right now.

National League North and South:
Winners:
Harrogate (North), Bishop's Stortford (South)

Promoted via playoffs:
Stockport County (North), Oxford City (South)

Relegated:
North- Gainsborough Trinity, Hednesford Town, Gloucester City
South- Hemel Hempstead, Weston-super-Mare, Concord Rangers

Promoted from Level 7
Hendon, Farnborough, Hyde, Dorchester Town, Ilkeston, King's Lynn

Season Recap-
I'll be looking forward to seeing the likes of Harrogate, Bishop's Stortford, and Oxford City next season, should be some fun.

FA Cup Final:
Manchester City def. Sheffield Wednesday 2-1
This is City's 6th FA Cup triumph.
Competition Recap-
The FA Cup is always a cesspool of craziness, and this year's edition was no different. Although there weren't any huge upsets, the highlight of the tournament was Sheffield Wednesday's remarkable run to the final. They defeated four Premier League sides en route to Wembley, namely Southampton, West Brom, Norwich, and Leicester until they fell to Kevin de Bruyne's 88th-minute strike in the grand finale. Overcoming three replayed ties, extra times, and intense drama, they were the darlings of England this season. Unfortunately, the run wasn't coupled with promotion from the Championship, as they finished 9th this season. A couple of other select highlights are Notts County's 6-5 extra time win over Hartlepool and City's Manchester Derby victory over United in the Fourth Round.

Capital One Cup Champions:
Manchester City
The second jewel in City's triple crown, they won the League Cup final over Tottenham in April. 
Upsets:
Newport def. Cardiff City, Luton def. Wolves, Leyton def. Nottingham Forest, Newport def. Crystal Palace, Leeds def. Man United

Johnstone's Paint Trophy Final:
Exeter City def. Walsall 2-1 (AET)
This is Exeter City's first JPT title.

FA Trophy Final:
Lincoln City def. Cheltenham Town 3-2
This is Lincoln's first FA Trophy title, as they've been a Football League club for almost their entire history. Already relegated, this was Lincoln's parting shot and they denied Cheltenham from celebrating a double. Well done, Imps!

Rest of World (International and Continental Club Competitions):
Some of this is just recap from what I've already posted throughout the season.

North America:
NACL Final:
Tigres (Mexico) def. CF America (Mexico)  4-3 on aggregate
This is Tigres' first NACL title.

Canadian Championship Final;
Ottawa Fury def. Vancouver Whitecaps 2-0
This competition would not normally have any significance, but Ottawa Fury of the North American Soccer League in the U.S. won it over the three Canadian MLS teams, meaning they qualify for the 2017-18 NACL!

South America:
Copa Sudamericana 2015 Champions:
River Plate
Recopa Sudamericana 2015 Champions:
River Plate

Copa America Centenario Final:
Argentina def. Brazil 1-0
This year's Copa America was very interesting, with Jamaica, Paraguay, and Venezuela reaching the quarter-finals at the expense of Costa Rica, USA, and Colombia, who all went crashing out in the group stage. However, the knockout stages went to plan and Argentina ended up defeating Brazil in the final for Lionel Messi's first major competition win with his country.

Africa:
African Champions League 2015 Champions:
ES Tunis
African Confederation Cup 2015 Champions:
ES Setif
African Super Cup Champions:
ES Tunis

Championship of African Nations 2016 Final (Not to be confused with African Cup of Nations):
Tunisia def. Zambia 2-0
This is Tunisia's 2nd CHAN title.

Asia:
Asian Champions League 2015 Champions:
Jeonbuk Hyundai
Asian Confederation Cup 2015 Champions:
Al-Qadsia

Oceania:
Oceania Champions League Final:
Auckland City FC def. Tafea (Vanuatu) 1-0
This is Auckland City's 8th OCL title, and their 6th consecutive.

Oceania Nations Cup 2016 Final:
New Zealand def. New Caledonia 1-0
This is New Zealand's 5th Nations Cup. They qualify for the 2017 Confederations Cup through this, but the World Cup Qualifying phases will continue into 2017.

Club World Cup 2015 Champions:
FC Barcelona

Miscellaneous Awards:
UEFA Best Player in Europe 2015-16:
1st- Lionel Messi 2nd- Cristiano Ronaldo 3rd- Luis Suarez
This is Messi's third BPiE award. This game is so hilariously rigged towards him, it's amazing. He did have 37 goals this season though...

European Golden Shoe 2015-16
1st- Lionel Messi (31 league goals) 2nd- Iago Aspas (31 league goals for Celta Vigo) 3rd- Paco Alcacer (26 league goals for Valencia)
This award is for league goals only. Messi wins his fourth award, topping an all-Spanish list of finalists. Apparently they used to give this award to people who actually scored the most goals in all of Europe, as in the 1990s guys from Georgia, Armenia, and Wales won it.

The Surprise List:
Here's a list of selected shocks from around the footballing world:

• Arsene Wenger retired!
• Sheffield Wednesday made the FA Cup Final!
• Southampton made the Europa League Round of 16, but then got relegated!
• West Ham made the Europa League Round of 32, but finished 17th in the league!
• Ronaldinho went to England, signing on with Sunderland in January!
• Diafra Sakho of West Ham had a monster season, scoring 37 goals in all competitions!
• Aberdeen were relegated from the SPL!
• The New Saints failed to win the Welsh Premier League title for the 5th year in a row, and they finished 4th!
• Mario Balotelli is still playing for Liverpool!
• Brighton were relegated from the Championship!
• Manchester United finished 8th!
• Rochdale and Oldham were promoted from League 1!
• Copa America- Jamaica beat Colombia 2-1 in the group stage!
• Europa League- Zeljeznicar beat PAOK in the Third Qualifying Round!
• Europa League- Qarabag beat Rubin Kazan in the Playoff!
• Europa League- Videoton beat Legia in the Playoff!
• Europa League- Marseille reached the Semi Finals!
• Champions League- Olympiacos beat Real Madrid in the group stage!
• Champions League- Sparta Prague beat CSKA Moscow in the Third Qualifying Round!
• Marouane Fellaini was sold to PSG!
• Hector Bellerin had a breakout season!
• Kidderminster Harriers, led by Ethan Burke, finished 2nd in the National League! 

Thanks for reading, if you managed to survive this post! I'd imagine this list will be even bigger next year with almost 50 leagues being activated by then. I'll have a post up soon detailing how EURO 2016 went, as I consider the final of that competition to be the official end of the 2015-16 football season. I'm halfway through the pre-season with Kidderminster, getting ready to go for the new season. Spoiler alert- there have been some interesting results! Hopefully this week will be the one in which I start the new season. Cheers!